Atyr PHARMA INC (NASDAQ:ATYR) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Atyr PHARMA INC (NASDAQ:ATYR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,920,000 shares, an increase of 31.6% from the February 28th total of 5,260,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,260,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.5 days. Currently, 8.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on ATYR. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Atyr PHARMA in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Atyr PHARMA in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. Leerink Partners began coverage on Atyr PHARMA in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $16.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Atyr PHARMA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $18.60.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Group One Trading LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atyr PHARMA during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Alterna Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Atyr PHARMA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Atyr PHARMA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Atyr PHARMA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Atyr PHARMA by 52.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 31,440 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 10,754 shares during the last quarter. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Atyr PHARMA Stock Down 9.1 %

NASDAQ:ATYR traded down $0.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $2.54. The stock had a trading volume of 887,931 shares, compared to its average volume of 869,204. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $3.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3.21. Atyr PHARMA has a 1-year low of $1.42 and a 1-year high of $4.66. The company has a market capitalization of $225.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.71 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 5.41 and a quick ratio of 5.41.

Atyr PHARMA (NASDAQ:ATYR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by $0.05. Equities analysts anticipate that Atyr PHARMA will post -0.91 EPS for the current year.

About Atyr PHARMA

aTyr Pharma, Inc engages in the discovery and development of medicines based on novel biological pathways. Its product pipeline includes ATYR1923, ATYR2810, NRP2 mAbs, and AARS-1, DARS-1. The company was founded by Paul Schimmel, Xiang-Lei Yang and Bruce Beutler on September 8, 2005 and is headquartered in San Diego, CA.