Short Interest in Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:VRCA) Grows By 18.2%

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:VRCA) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 478,579 shares, an increase of 18.2% from the February 26th total of 405,005 shares. Currently, 6.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 151,325 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.2 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on VRCA. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Zacks Research cut shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Loop Capital set a $17.00 target price on Verrica Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, upgraded shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verrica Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Armistice Capital LLC grew its holdings in Verrica Pharmaceuticals by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 8,881,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,708,000 after acquiring an additional 313,944 shares during the last quarter. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verrica Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,878,000. Velan Capital Investment Management LP bought a new position in Verrica Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $3,919,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in Verrica Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,210,000. Finally, Kalehua Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verrica Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $1,959,000. 42.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 11.1%

VRCA stock opened at $5.29 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.87. Verrica Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $3.28 and a 52 week high of $9.82. The company has a quick ratio of 2.45, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $90.88 million, a PE ratio of -3.35 and a beta of 1.47.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRCA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported ($0.51) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.43) by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $5.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.52 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verrica Pharmaceuticals will post -1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of topical therapies for dermatological conditions. Its lead investigational product, VP-102, is a standardized formulation of cantharidin in a pre-measured applicator designed to treat molluscum contagiosum and common warts. Verrica’s approach emphasizes consistency of dosing and patient convenience, aiming to improve upon off‐label use of existing treatments.

Beyond VP-102, Verrica is advancing VP-103, a next‐generation topical candidate intended to optimize tolerability while maintaining efficacy against viral skin lesions.