Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Sell"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST) from "hold" to "sell", though the consensus across analysts remains a "Buy" with an average target price of $8.80.
• Operational and insider concerns: AQST missed quarterly EPS estimates (reported ($0.26) vs. ($0.13) expected), and insiders — including the CEO and COO — sold a combined 226,468 shares on March 10 (395,690 shares sold by insiders in the last three months), while the stock trades around $4.32 with a market cap near $527M.

Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also commented on AQST. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Lake Street Capital set a $6.00 price target on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $8.80.

Aquestive Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of AQST stock opened at $4.32 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $527.21 million, a P/E ratio of -5.54 and a beta of 1.54. Aquestive Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $2.12 and a 1-year high of $7.55. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $4.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.08.

Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $13.02 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.28 million. Analysts expect that Aquestive Therapeutics will post -0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Aquestive Therapeutics

In related news, COO Cassie Jung sold 45,791 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.17, for a total value of $190,948.47. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 274,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,146,666.60. This trade represents a 14.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel Barber sold 180,677 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.17, for a total transaction of $753,423.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,004,753 shares in the company, valued at $4,189,820.01. The trade was a 15.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 395,690 shares of company stock valued at $1,650,027 in the last three months. 8.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Aquestive Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AQST. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 12.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 129,019 shares of the company's stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 14,025 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 16.2% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,977,001 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,545,000 after purchasing an additional 276,295 shares during the period. Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 15.3% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 98,751 shares of the company's stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 13,130 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 46.3% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 435,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 137,956 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 35.0% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 140,872 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 36,509 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 32.45% of the company's stock.

About Aquestive Therapeutics

Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel drug delivery systems. Leveraging its proprietary PharmFilm® technology, Aquestive designs thin-film formulations that facilitate sublingual, buccal and oral delivery of small molecules, offering rapid onset of action and improved patient compliance compared with traditional dosage forms.

The company's lead product, Libervant® (diazepam) Buccal Film, is approved by the U.S.

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