Short Interest in uniQure (NASDAQ:QURE) Drops By 23.8%

uniQure (NASDAQ:QURE) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,440,000 shares, a decrease of 23.8% from the January 31st total of 3,200,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,150,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on QURE shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of uniQure from $35.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of uniQure in a report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on uniQure from $12.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of uniQure from $7.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, StockNews.com raised uniQure to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.89.

uniQure Stock Performance

NASDAQ QURE opened at $12.09 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.91. The company has a current ratio of 6.51, a quick ratio of 6.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $589.30 million, a PE ratio of -2.44 and a beta of 0.38. uniQure has a twelve month low of $3.73 and a twelve month high of $19.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Matthew C. Kapusta sold 28,341 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.29, for a total transaction of $291,628.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 651,454 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,703,461.66. This represents a 4.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Christian Klemt sold 10,438 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.29, for a total value of $107,407.02. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 217,730 shares in the company, valued at $2,240,441.70. This trade represents a 4.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 96,044 shares of company stock worth $1,001,040. Corporate insiders own 4.74% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of QURE. RTW Investments LP acquired a new position in shares of uniQure in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Atria Investments Inc purchased a new stake in uniQure in the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in uniQure during the third quarter worth $58,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in uniQure during the third quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in shares of uniQure during the fourth quarter worth $77,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

About uniQure

uniQure N.V. develops treatments for patients suffering from rare and other devastating diseases. It offers HEMGENIX that has completed Phase III HOPE-B pivotal trial for the treatment of hemophilia B. The company also develops AMT-130, a gene therapy that is in Phase I/II clinical study for the treatment of Huntington's disease.