Protara Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:TARA) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Protara Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:TARA) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,740,000 shares, a growth of 18.1% from the October 15th total of 2,320,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 179,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 15.3 days.

Protara Therapeutics Stock Down 4.3 %

TARA stock traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $2.47. The company had a trading volume of 273,810 shares, compared to its average volume of 230,296. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $2.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.96 million, a P/E ratio of -0.88 and a beta of 1.77. Protara Therapeutics has a one year low of $1.04 and a one year high of $5.24.

Protara Therapeutics (NASDAQ:TARA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.50). On average, research analysts forecast that Protara Therapeutics will post -2.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on TARA. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $23.00 price target on shares of Protara Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Protara Therapeutics from $30.00 to $25.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Opaleye Management Inc. sold 36,492 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.89, for a total transaction of $68,969.88. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 54,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,194. This trade represents a 40.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 12.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Protara Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Protara Therapeutics in the third quarter worth $60,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Protara Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth $161,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Protara Therapeutics by 21.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 170,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $311,000 after acquiring an additional 29,514 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Protara Therapeutics by 77.8% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 150,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after acquiring an additional 65,800 shares during the period. 38.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Protara Therapeutics

Protara Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in advancing transformative therapies for the treatment of cancer and rare diseases. The company's lead program is TARA-002, an investigational cell therapy, which is in Phase II clinical trial for the treatment of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer and lymphatic malformations.