Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 17,648,381 shares, an increase of 20.0% from the February 12th total of 14,706,215 shares. Currently, 8.3% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 12,294,841 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days. Based on an average trading volume of 12,294,841 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days. Currently, 8.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ocular Therapeutix news, insider Jeffrey S. Heier sold 3,057 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.28, for a total value of $25,311.96. Following the sale, the insider owned 323,368 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,677,487.04. This trade represents a 0.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Pravin Dugel sold 20,056 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.28, for a total value of $166,063.68. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,013,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,947,822.16. This represents a 0.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 197,221 shares of company stock valued at $1,754,805. 2.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ocular Therapeutix

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Ocular Therapeutix by 3,136.1% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,855,706 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $45,073,000 after buying an additional 3,736,560 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in Ocular Therapeutix by 2,003.2% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,424,439 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,032,000 after buying an additional 3,261,619 shares during the last quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 38.5% in the third quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,250,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $119,822,000 after acquiring an additional 2,850,000 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,575,193 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $140,523,000 after acquiring an additional 2,411,953 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 106.5% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,229,202 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $51,321,000 after acquiring an additional 2,180,702 shares during the last quarter. 59.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on OCUL. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Chardan Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.78.

Ocular Therapeutix Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:OCUL traded up $0.05 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $8.68. 2,608,715 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,845,236. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 15.39 and a quick ratio of 15.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $9.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.03 and a beta of 0.91. Ocular Therapeutix has a 12-month low of $5.80 and a 12-month high of $16.44.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.29) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.33) by $0.04. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative net margin of 511.90% and a negative return on equity of 70.68%. The firm had revenue of $13.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.13 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.29) earnings per share. Ocular Therapeutix’s quarterly revenue was down 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Ocular Therapeutix will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Ocular Therapeutix

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of innovative therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, the company focuses on sustained-release drug delivery platforms designed to address key unmet needs in ophthalmology. Its proprietary hydrogel-based inserts and sealants aim to improve patient compliance and outcomes by providing controlled release of active pharmaceutical ingredients directly to ocular tissues.

The company’s flagship product, DEXTENZA®, is a preservative-free, sustained-release dexamethasone intracanalicular insert approved by the U.S.