Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) Short Interest Update

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,016,616 shares, an increase of 500.8% from the December 31st total of 169,201 shares. Approximately 14.7% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,101,087 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.9 days. Based on an average daily volume of 1,101,087 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.9 days. Approximately 14.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Atara Biotherapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of Atara Biotherapeutics stock opened at $5.56 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.09 million, a PE ratio of 2.55 and a beta of -0.41. Atara Biotherapeutics has a one year low of $4.20 and a one year high of $19.15. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.95.

Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.83) by $0.51. The firm had revenue of $3.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.74 million. Atara Biotherapeutics had a negative return on equity of 41.78% and a net margin of 15.40%. On average, equities analysts predict that Atara Biotherapeutics will post -10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Atara Biotherapeutics

In other news, major shareholder Innovation Ltd Panacea sold 80,554 shares of Atara Biotherapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.07, for a total value of $488,962.78. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,324,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,039,387.22. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Anhco Nguyen sold 2,915 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.19, for a total transaction of $38,448.85. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 64,974 shares in the company, valued at $857,007.06. This represents a 4.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 87,077 shares of company stock valued at $575,001. Company insiders own 4.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $327,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in Atara Biotherapeutics by 33.8% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 26,213 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 6,622 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Atara Biotherapeutics by 2.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 60,136 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $464,000 after acquiring an additional 1,457 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 183.5% in the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 63,816 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $914,000 after purchasing an additional 41,302 shares in the last quarter. 70.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ATRA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective (down from $25.00) on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, New Street Research set a $6.00 price target on Atara Biotherapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $6.00.

Atara Biotherapeutics Company Profile

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel T-cell immunotherapies to transform the treatment of cancer and autoimmune disease. Headquartered in South San Francisco, California, Atara leverages its proprietary off-the-shelf allogeneic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-directed T-cell platform to generate engineered cell therapies designed to target EBV-driven malignancies and immune-mediated disorders.

The company’s lead product candidate, tabelecleucel, is an off-the-shelf, EBV-specific T-cell therapy in clinical development for the treatment of EBV-positive post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD) and other EBV-associated cancers.