MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 25,732,896 shares, an increase of 26.1% from the December 15th total of 20,402,856 shares. Approximately 8.6% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 3,604,344 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.1 days. Based on an average trading volume of 3,604,344 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.1 days. Approximately 8.6% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MNKD shares. Zacks Research raised shares of MannKind from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of MannKind in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on MannKind from $8.00 to $7.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Leerink Partners started coverage on MannKind in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $7.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on MannKind from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $10.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MannKind news, CEO Michael Castagna sold 65,804 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.01, for a total transaction of $395,482.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,504,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,053,799.92. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sanjay R. Singh sold 18,777 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.03, for a total value of $94,448.31. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 455,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,289,711.33. This represents a 3.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 281,623 shares of company stock valued at $1,641,289. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MannKind

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MNKD. Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of MannKind in the third quarter valued at $1,240,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in MannKind by 68.3% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 437,316 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,636,000 after purchasing an additional 177,440 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in MannKind by 12.3% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,617,583 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $28,494,000 after buying an additional 831,478 shares in the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of MannKind by 11.2% during the third quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,872,286 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $15,424,000 after buying an additional 290,276 shares during the period. Finally, TSP Capital Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of MannKind by 7.2% during the second quarter. TSP Capital Management Group LLC now owns 2,982,575 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $11,155,000 after buying an additional 201,225 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.55% of the company’s stock.

MannKind Trading Down 6.6%

Shares of MNKD traded down $0.37 on Monday, reaching $5.21. 6,743,833 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,008,539. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $5.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.04. MannKind has a 12 month low of $3.38 and a 12 month high of $6.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.10 and a beta of 0.81.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $82.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $80.47 million. MannKind had a negative return on equity of 49.33% and a net margin of 9.32%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.04 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that MannKind will post 0.1 EPS for the current year.

MannKind Company Profile

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.