Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:IOVA) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:IOVA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 56,920,000 shares, a growth of 5.4% from the November 15th total of 53,990,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 6,130,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 9.3 days. Currently, 23.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Iovance Biotherapeutics Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of IOVA traded up $0.01 on Monday, reaching $7.84. 5,155,221 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,181,353. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $9.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $9.34. Iovance Biotherapeutics has a 12 month low of $6.70 and a 12 month high of $18.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.26 and a beta of 0.55.

Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:IOVA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $58.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $53.54 million. Iovance Biotherapeutics had a negative return on equity of 58.43% and a negative net margin of 451.25%. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.46) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Iovance Biotherapeutics will post -1.23 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ryan D. Maynard sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.06, for a total value of $503,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $75,450. This represents a 86.96 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 12.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Iovance Biotherapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quest Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics by 1,237.7% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 5,003 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 4,629 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $58,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics by 754.0% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 8,813 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 7,781 shares in the last quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Finally, Abacus Planning Group Inc. bought a new stake in Iovance Biotherapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $82,000. 77.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IOVA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $17.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $22.33.

About Iovance Biotherapeutics

Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc, a commercial-stage biotechnology company, develops and commercializes cell therapies using autologous tumor infiltrating lymphocyte for the treatment of metastatic melanoma and other solid tumor cancers in the United States. The company offers Amtagvi, a tumor-derived autologous T cell immunotherapy used to treat adult patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma; and Proleukin, an interleukin-2 product for the treatment of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma.