aTyr Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATYR) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• aTyr Pharma experienced a notable increase in short interest, with a total of 25.6 million shares sold short as of July 31, marking a 25.6% increase from mid-July.
• The company reported an earnings per share of ($0.22) for the last quarter, which fell short of the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($0.04).
• Analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Buy" for aTyr Pharma, with target prices ranging from $21.25 to $35.00.

aTyr Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATYR - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 25,600,000 shares, anincreaseof25.6% from the July 15th total of 20,380,000 shares. Currently,26.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 3,840,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.7 days. Based on an average daily volume of 3,840,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.7 days. Currently,26.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

aTyr Pharma Trading Up 5.6%

Shares of ATYR stock opened at $4.92 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $482.11 million, a PE ratio of -6.15 and a beta of 0.94. aTyr Pharma has a 1-year low of $1.67 and a 1-year high of $7.29. The business has a 50-day moving average of $5.30 and a 200 day moving average of $4.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 5.63 and a quick ratio of 5.63.

aTyr Pharma (NASDAQ:ATYR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($0.04). As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that aTyr Pharma will post -0.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ATYR shares. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of aTyr Pharma in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen cut aTyr Pharma from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on aTyr Pharma from $17.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, aTyr Pharma has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $21.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On aTyr Pharma

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ATYR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of aTyr Pharma by 467.8% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 178,532 shares of the company's stock worth $646,000 after acquiring an additional 147,092 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP bought a new position in aTyr Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $881,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in aTyr Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at $330,000. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in aTyr Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at $720,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in aTyr Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at $1,332,000. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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