Benitec Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:BNTC) Short Interest Update

Benitec Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:BNTC - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 216,100 shares, a growth of 23.6% from the February 28th total of 174,800 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 50,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days.

Insider Activity at Benitec Biopharma

In other news, Director Suvretta Capital Management, L acquired 900,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $13.00 per share, with a total value of $11,700,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 8,793,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at $114,312,185. The trade was a 11.40 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Benitec Biopharma

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BNTC. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Benitec Biopharma by 54.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 38,200 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $482,000 after purchasing an additional 13,425 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Benitec Biopharma by 31.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 83,987 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $772,000 after buying an additional 20,012 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Benitec Biopharma by 138.4% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 35,476 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 20,597 shares during the period. Lion Point Capital LP grew its holdings in Benitec Biopharma by 59.0% during the 4th quarter. Lion Point Capital LP now owns 62,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $783,000 after acquiring an additional 23,000 shares during the period. Finally, 683 Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Benitec Biopharma in the 4th quarter worth about $452,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.19% of the company's stock.

Benitec Biopharma Stock Down 5.3 %

Shares of BNTC stock traded down $0.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $12.32. 99,875 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 55,878. The company has a market cap of $288.92 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.16 and a beta of 0.76. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $12.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.28. Benitec Biopharma has a 1-year low of $4.75 and a 1-year high of $16.90.

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.55) by $0.19. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Benitec Biopharma will post -1.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Benitec Biopharma in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $28.00 target price on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of Benitec Biopharma to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $24.43.

Benitec Biopharma Company Profile

Benitec Biopharma Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, focuses on the development of novel genetic medicines. The company develops DNA-directed RNA interference-based therapeutics for chronic and life-threatening human conditions. It is developing BB-301, an adeno-associated virus based gene therapy agent for treating oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy.