Investors Buy Large Volume of 89bio Put Options (NASDAQ:ETNB)

89bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETNB - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders bought 12,935 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 1,544% compared to the average daily volume of 787 put options.

89bio Stock Up 3.3 %

ETNB stock traded up $0.21 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $6.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 336,891 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,308,973. 89bio has a twelve month low of $4.16 and a twelve month high of $11.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $945.98 million, a P/E ratio of -2.23 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 11.66 and a quick ratio of 11.66. The company's fifty day moving average price is $7.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.19.

89bio (NASDAQ:ETNB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported ($1.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.42). As a group, equities research analysts predict that 89bio will post -3.19 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on ETNB. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of 89bio in a research note on Friday, March 14th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $11.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of 89bio in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group boosted their price target on 89bio from $25.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of 89bio in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of 89bio in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $27.56.

Insider Activity at 89bio

In related news, Director Ra Capital Management, L.P. acquired 5,714,285 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $8.75 per share, with a total value of $49,999,993.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,554,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $171,100,291.25. This represents a 41.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Quoc Le-Nguyen sold 15,329 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.95, for a total transaction of $91,207.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 328,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,953,521.85. The trade was a 4.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On 89bio

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of 89bio by 76.8% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 428,895 shares of the company's stock worth $3,118,000 after purchasing an additional 186,293 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of 89bio by 25.0% in the 1st quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 314,772 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,288,000 after buying an additional 62,874 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 89bio by 48.5% during the 1st quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 140,306 shares of the company's stock worth $1,020,000 after acquiring an additional 45,812 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in 89bio by 17.0% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 152,138 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,106,000 after acquiring an additional 22,158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in 89bio by 4,898.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,648 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 7,495 shares in the last quarter.

About 89bio

89bio, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapies for the treatment of liver and cardio-metabolic diseases. Its lead product candidate is pegozafermin, a glycoPEGylated analog of fibroblast growth factor 21 for the treatment of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis; and for the treatment of severe hypertriglyceridemia.

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