Oncobiologics, Inc. (NASDAQ:OTLK) Short Interest Up 78.0% in July

Oncobiologics, Inc. (NASDAQ:OTLK) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 20,013,892 shares, an increase of 78.0% from the July 15th total of 11,240,969 shares. Currently, 13.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 18,337,663 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days.

Oncobiologics Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of NASDAQ OTLK traded down $0.02 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $0.65. The company had a trading volume of 23,867,406 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,606,880. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $1.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $0.70. Oncobiologics has a 12 month low of $0.16 and a 12 month high of $3.39. The stock has a market cap of $96.58 million, a P/E ratio of -0.84 and a beta of 0.82.

Oncobiologics (NASDAQ:OTLK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 14th. The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $0.01 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.97 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Oncobiologics will post -0.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on OTLK. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $4.00 price objective on shares of Oncobiologics in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Oncobiologics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on Oncobiologics to $1.60 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Ascendiant Capital Markets boosted their price target on Oncobiologics from $6.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Oncobiologics from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Oncobiologics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Faisal Ghiath Sukhtian purchased 95,398 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1.05 per share, for a total transaction of $100,167.90. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 220,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $232,020.60. This represents a 75.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ghiath M. Sukhtian purchased 2,525,252 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $0.99 per share, with a total value of $2,499,999.48. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 24,617,320 shares in the company, valued at $24,371,146.80. The trade was a 11.43% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders acquired 11,189,359 shares of company stock worth $7,662,666 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Oncobiologics by 865.2% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 24,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 21,941 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Oncobiologics by 74.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 103,524 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 44,063 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Oncobiologics by 42.7% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 84,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 25,351 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.20% of the company’s stock.

About Oncobiologics

Oncobiologics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of biosimilar therapeutics for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Leveraging recombinant DNA technology and advanced formulation platforms, the company aims to create high-quality, cost-effective alternatives to originator biologic drugs. Oncobiologics’ research focus includes monoclonal antibodies and growth factors that support oncology treatment and immunomodulation.

Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts, Oncobiologics maintains research facilities in the Greater Boston area and an integrated manufacturing site in Hyderabad, India, through its wholly owned subsidiary.