Short Interest in Assembly Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASMB) Declines By 7.9%

Assembly Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASMB - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 16,400 shares, a decline of 7.9% from the September 30th total of 17,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 25,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.6 days. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Assembly Biosciences Stock Down 3.9 %

ASMB traded down $0.69 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $17.02. The stock had a trading volume of 13,939 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,511. Assembly Biosciences has a one year low of $7.69 and a one year high of $19.93. The business has a 50-day moving average of $16.56 and a 200-day moving average of $15.06.

Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.98) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($2.96) by $0.98. The firm had revenue of $8.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.96 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Assembly Biosciences will post -7.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ASMB. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Assembly Biosciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $2.00 to $35.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. HC Wainwright reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th.

Insider Transactions at Assembly Biosciences

In other news, major shareholder Alexander Schornstein acquired 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $14.58 per share, for a total transaction of $145,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 703,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,251,387.54. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Assembly Biosciences

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Armistice Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Assembly Biosciences during the second quarter valued at about $6,421,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Assembly Biosciences by 131.0% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 13,558 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 7,690 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Assembly Biosciences by 39.2% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 54,911 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $753,000 after buying an additional 15,451 shares during the period. 19.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Assembly Biosciences Company Profile

Assembly Biosciences, Inc, a biotechnology company, develops therapeutic candidates for the treatment of viral diseases. It develops ABI-5366, a long-acting herpes simplex virus (HSV) helicase-primase inhibitor that is in Phase 1a/1b clinical trial to treat recurrent genital herpes; ABI-1179, which is in Phase 1a/1b clinical trial for the treatment of recurrent genital herpes; and ABI-6250, a small molecule orally bioavailable hepatitis delta virus entry inhibitor that is in Phase 1a clinical trial.