Short Interest in Opthea Limited (NASDAQ:OPT) Increases By 20.7%

Opthea Limited (NASDAQ:OPT - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 522,200 shares, an increase of 20.7% from the February 28th total of 432,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 31,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 16.5 days. Approximately 0.4% of the company's shares are sold short.

Opthea Stock Performance

OPT traded up $0.23 on Monday, hitting $3.41. The company had a trading volume of 3,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 26,223. Opthea has a 52-week low of $1.79 and a 52-week high of $6.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4.08.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Opthea

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new stake in shares of Opthea during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. OLD Mission Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Opthea during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Opthea during the 3rd quarter worth $81,000. Citadel Advisors LLC bought a new position in Opthea in the 4th quarter worth $79,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in Opthea during the third quarter valued at $114,000. Institutional investors own 55.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on OPT. Oppenheimer lowered Opthea from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $1.00 price target (down previously from $8.00) on shares of Opthea in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Opthea to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. HC Wainwright cut Opthea from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $12.00 to $2.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs cut Opthea from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Opthea currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1.33.

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Opthea Company Profile

Opthea Limited, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development and commercialization of therapies primarily for eye disease in Australia. The company's development activities are based on the intellectual property portfolio covering Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors (VEGF) VEGF-C, VEGF-D, and VEGF Receptor-3 for the treatment of diseases associated with blood and lymphatic vessel growth, as well as vascular leakage.