Short Interest in Acacia Research Corporation (NASDAQ:ACTG) Increases By 18.2%

Acacia Research Corporation (NASDAQ:ACTG) saw a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 1,849,789 shares, an increase of 18.2% from the February 12th total of 1,564,880 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 176,282 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 10.5 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 176,282 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 10.5 days. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ACTG has been the subject of several research reports. Craig Hallum upped their target price on Acacia Research from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Acacia Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Acacia Research from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Acacia Research has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $6.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ACTG. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Acacia Research in the first quarter worth $35,000. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. purchased a new stake in Acacia Research during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Acacia Research in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Sather Financial Group Inc bought a new stake in Acacia Research in the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP purchased a new position in shares of Acacia Research in the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. Institutional investors own 86.69% of the company’s stock.

Acacia Research Trading Up 1.0%

NASDAQ ACTG opened at $4.93 on Tuesday. Acacia Research has a 1-year low of $2.70 and a 1-year high of $5.13. The company has a current ratio of 9.18, a quick ratio of 8.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $4.06 and a 200-day moving average of $3.71. The firm has a market cap of $475.55 million, a PE ratio of 21.43 and a beta of 0.52.

Acacia Research (NASDAQ:ACTG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The business services provider reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.17. The business had revenue of $50.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.00 million. Acacia Research had a return on equity of 4.11% and a net margin of 7.60%.

Acacia Research Company Profile

Acacia Research Corporation is a publicly traded patent licensing company based in New York City. The firm specializes in acquiring patented technologies through a network of wholly owned subsidiaries and seeking licensing agreements or settlements with companies that utilize those technologies. Since its founding in 1993, Acacia has built a business model centered on identifying innovative inventions and monetizing them through patent enforcement and strategic partnerships.

The company’s activities span a broad range of technology sectors, including life sciences, medical devices, software, telecommunications and consumer electronics.