MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) Short Interest Up 29.8% in March

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) saw a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 29,464,200 shares, a growth of 29.8% from the March 15th total of 22,701,389 shares. Approximately 9.8% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 7,230,041 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.1 days.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael Castagna acquired 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $2.59 per share, with a total value of $259,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,575,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,671,609.49. This trade represents a 4.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MannKind

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Level Four Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of MannKind by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,333 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,925 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of MannKind by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 162,217 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $871,000 after purchasing an additional 2,201 shares during the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of MannKind by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 200,763 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,355 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in shares of MannKind by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 33,405 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $189,000 after purchasing an additional 2,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in MannKind by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 39,234 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $220,000 after buying an additional 2,443 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MNKD shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of MannKind from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of MannKind from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of MannKind from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $3.50 target price (down from $7.50) on shares of MannKind in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $11.00 target price on shares of MannKind in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MannKind has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $8.56.

MannKind Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MNKD opened at $2.77 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $855.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 138.57 and a beta of 1.04. MannKind has a 52 week low of $2.23 and a 52 week high of $6.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $3.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $4.84.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $111.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.85 million. MannKind had a net margin of 1.68% and a negative return on equity of 11.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 45.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.03 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that MannKind will post 0.1 earnings per share for the current year.

About MannKind

MannKind Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company specialized in the development and commercialization of inhaled therapeutic products. The company’s core business revolves around its proprietary Technosphere® drug‐delivery platform, which is designed to enable rapid absorption of small‐molecule drugs through pulmonary administration. MannKind’s lead product, Afrezza®, is an inhaled insulin therapy intended for adults with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, offering users a rapid‐acting alternative to traditional injectable insulins.

Afrezza received U.S.