Veru Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:VERU)

Veru Inc. (NASDAQ:VERU - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors purchased 9,142 call options on the company. This is an increase of 206% compared to the average daily volume of 2,983 call options.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael L. Rankowitz purchased 95,279 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $0.55 per share, with a total value of $52,403.45. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 195,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $107,403.45. The trade was a 95.28 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 14.90% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Veru

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VERU. MPM Bioimpact LLC purchased a new position in Veru during the 4th quarter worth $2,788,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Veru by 181.6% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 1,120,586 shares of the company's stock worth $729,000 after acquiring an additional 722,644 shares during the last quarter. PVG Asset Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Veru by 64.4% during the fourth quarter. PVG Asset Management Corp now owns 1,047,310 shares of the company's stock worth $681,000 after acquiring an additional 410,340 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Veru by 337.4% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 255,782 shares of the company's stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 197,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Veru by 309.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 184,777 shares of the company's stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 139,617 shares during the last quarter. 47.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Veru Stock Performance

VERU stock traded up $0.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $0.52. 1,015,189 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,973,939. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $0.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $0.71. Veru has a 12 month low of $0.45 and a 12 month high of $1.92. The company has a market capitalization of $76.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.00 and a beta of -0.46.

Veru (NASDAQ:VERU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by $0.01. Veru had a negative net margin of 223.85% and a negative return on equity of 112.75%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Veru will post -0.22 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $3.00 price target on shares of Veru in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd.

Veru Company Profile

Veru Inc, a late clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing medicines for treatment of metabolic diseases, oncology, and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Its marketed products comprise FC2 female condom for the dual protection against unplanned pregnancy and the transmission of sexually transmitted infections.