Centessa Pharmaceuticals PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:CNTA) Short Interest Down 47.5% in April

Key Points

• Short interest down 47.5% in April to 3,468,688 shares (from 6,607,633 on March 31), leaving a days-to-cover ratio of 0.9 and about 2.4% of the company's shares shorted.
• Insiders have sold 349,073 shares worth roughly $9.43 million over the past three months — including notable sales by Karen M. Anderson and Iqbal J. Hussain — leaving insiders owning 7.09% of the stock.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of Hold with an average price target of $40.70 (4 Buy, 9 Hold, 1 Sell), amid several recent downgrades from firms like Wells Fargo and Guggenheim.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:CNTA - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 3,468,688 shares, a decline of 47.5% from the March 31st total of 6,607,633 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,890,081 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.9 days. Currently, 2.4% of the company's stock are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CNTA shares. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $35.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Guggenheim downgraded Centessa Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Lifesci Capital lowered Centessa Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Chardan Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Stephens cut Centessa Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Centessa Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $40.70.

Insider Transactions at Centessa Pharmaceuticals

In other news, insider Karen M. Anderson sold 41,076 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.12, for a total transaction of $1,237,209.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 62,085 shares in the company, valued at $1,870,000.20. This trade represents a 39.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Iqbal J. Hussain sold 38,951 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.15, for a total transaction of $979,617.65. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 57,645 shares in the company, valued at $1,449,771.75. This trade represents a 40.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 349,073 shares of company stock valued at $9,429,412. Insiders own 7.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Centessa Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CNTA. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. purchased a new stake in Centessa Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 7,580.0% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,536 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 1,516 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 42.4% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 3,387 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Knott David M Jr purchased a new stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $100,000. 82.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

CNTA stock traded up $0.03 during trading on Monday, reaching $39.50. The stock had a trading volume of 1,344,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,426,313. The firm has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a PE ratio of -26.87 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 8.57, a quick ratio of 8.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock's 50 day moving average is $31.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.35. Centessa Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $10.95 and a 52 week high of $40.26.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CNTA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported ($0.48) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.38) by ($0.10). As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Centessa Pharmaceuticals will post -1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

About Centessa Pharmaceuticals

Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc is a global clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative therapies across multiple disease areas. The company operates a modular R&D network, bringing together a portfolio of independent, specialist research entities under a single corporate umbrella. This structure is designed to accelerate decision‐making and resource allocation while leveraging deep scientific expertise in each therapeutic domain.

Centessa’s pipeline spans oncology, immunology, neuroscience, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, as well as rare genetic disorders.

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