Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST) Trading Down 5.3% Following Insider Selling

Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AQST)’s stock price fell 5.3% during mid-day trading on Monday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $5.68 and last traded at $5.68. 2,461,670 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 37% from the average session volume of 1,799,700 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.99.

Specifically, insider Peter E. Boyd sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.30, for a total transaction of $63,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 278,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,753,434.90. This represents a 3.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Daniel Barber sold 91,343 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.03, for a total transaction of $550,798.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 923,430 shares in the company, valued at $5,568,282.90. This represents a 9.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Aquestive Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Lifesci Capital raised shares of Aquestive Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $10.00 price objective on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on Aquestive Therapeutics from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aquestive Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $10.29.

Aquestive Therapeutics Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $563.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.07 and a beta of 1.82. The business has a 50-day moving average of $4.40 and a 200-day moving average of $3.52.

Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.04. The company had revenue of $10.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.32 million. Aquestive Therapeutics has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities analysts predict that Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aquestive Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AQST. Summit Wealth & Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in Aquestive Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 78.3% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 9,413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,134 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Aquestive Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, USAdvisors Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Aquestive Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 32.45% of the company’s stock.

Aquestive Therapeutics Company Profile

Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc operates as a pharmaceutical company in the United States and internationally. The company markets Sympazan, an oral soluble film formulation of clobazam for the treatment of lennox-gastaut syndrome; Suboxone, a sublingual film formulation of buprenorphine and naloxone for the treatment of opioid dependence; Zuplenz, an oral soluble film formulation of ondansetron for the treatment of nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy and post-operative recovery; and Azstarys, a once-daily product for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.