Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS) Short Interest Update

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,160,000 shares, a growth of 27.4% from the November 30th total of 2,480,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,330,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Aclaris Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ACRS traded down $0.15 during trading on Monday, reaching $2.58. The stock had a trading volume of 106,987 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,373,727. The company has a market cap of $184.29 million, a P/E ratio of -4.96 and a beta of 0.45. Aclaris Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $0.86 and a fifty-two week high of $5.17. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $2.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.80.

Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $4.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.31 million. Aclaris Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 136.65% and a negative return on equity of 40.26%. Analysts forecast that Aclaris Therapeutics will post -0.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ACRS shares. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Aclaris Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Leerink Partners upgraded Aclaris Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $2.00 to $7.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. HC Wainwright upgraded Aclaris Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. BTIG Research raised shares of Aclaris Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Aclaris Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Aclaris Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $11.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Aclaris Therapeutics news, Director Anand Mehra bought 666,666 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $2.25 per share, for a total transaction of $1,499,998.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 710,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,567.50. The trade was a 1,537.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 6.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BML Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Aclaris Therapeutics by 9.7% during the third quarter. BML Capital Management LLC now owns 14,250,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,261,866 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Aclaris Therapeutics by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,336,850 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,671,000 after acquiring an additional 63,358 shares during the last quarter. Stonepine Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Aclaris Therapeutics by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. Stonepine Capital Management LLC now owns 2,458,873 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,828,000 after acquiring an additional 531,427 shares during the period. Trium Capital LLP grew its stake in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Trium Capital LLP now owns 1,912,990 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,200,000 after purchasing an additional 20,940 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics during the third quarter worth approximately $1,053,000. 98.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Aclaris Therapeutics

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of novel drug candidates for immune-inflammatory diseases in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Therapeutics and Contract Research. The Therapeutics segment is involved in identifying and developing therapies to address significant unmet needs for immuno-inflammatory diseases.