Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST) Shares Down 4.4% – Time to Sell?

Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AQST)’s stock price dropped 4.4% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $5.18 and last traded at $5.1550. Approximately 837,966 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 3,103,022 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.39.

Aquestive Therapeutics News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Aquestive Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reiterated its “Buy” rating and $10 price target, implying substantial upside relative to the stock’s recent trading level. HC Wainwright Reiterates Buy Rating for Aquestive Therapeutics
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright raised its earnings estimates across multiple periods. The firm improved its forecast for Q3 2026 EPS to a $0.09 loss from a $0.13 loss, Q4 2026 EPS to a $0.09 loss from $0.15, and FY2026 EPS to a $0.43 loss from $0.51. It also raised FY2027 EPS to a $0.39 loss from $0.52, with smaller upgrades for Q1, Q2 and Q4 2027. These revisions suggest expectations for improving financial performance and narrowing losses.
• Neutral Sentiment: The revised forecasts still show ongoing losses. HC Wainwright expects AQST to remain unprofitable through 2027, while the broader consensus calls for a $0.50 loss per share in the current year. The estimates are more optimistic but do not yet indicate a transition to profitability.
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data appears unreliable. The report lists short interest at zero shares both before and after the period, along with a “NaN” percentage change and zero days to cover. Consequently, it provides no meaningful evidence of short-covering or short-selling pressure.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on AQST shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Aquestive Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $10.00 price target on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $8.80.

Aquestive Therapeutics Stock Down 3.2%

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4.15. The firm has a market cap of $654.55 million, a P/E ratio of -8.02 and a beta of 1.49.

Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.18) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $13.82 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.42 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Julie Krop sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.02, for a total value of $125,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $125,500. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 6.81% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aquestive Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 78.3% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 9,413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,134 shares during the period. Modern Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, ADAR1 Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 103.9% during the 1st quarter. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 264,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 32.45% of the company’s stock.

About Aquestive Therapeutics

Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel drug delivery systems. Leveraging its proprietary PharmFilm® technology, Aquestive designs thin-film formulations that facilitate sublingual, buccal and oral delivery of small molecules, offering rapid onset of action and improved patient compliance compared with traditional dosage forms.

The company’s lead product, Libervant® (diazepam) Buccal Film, is approved by the U.S.