Assembly Biosciences, Inc. (ASMB) - What Are Researchers Thinking About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus on Assembly Biosciences, with four buy ratings, one strong buy, and one sell. The average 12-month price target is $47.50, well above the reported share price of $20.57.
• Institutional investors made notable purchases, including Seven Fleet Capital Management increasing its stake by 671.5%; hedge funds and other institutions collectively own 19.92% of the company.
• Assembly reported quarterly revenue of $13.37 million and an EPS loss of $0.20, outperforming analyst expectations of $8.60 million in revenue and a $0.72 loss. The clinical-stage biotech is developing oral antivirals targeting hepatitis B and herpesvirus infections.

Assembly Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASMB - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $47.50.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ASMB. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Mizuho set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Zacks Research raised shares of Assembly Biosciences from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on Assembly Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $52.00 target price on the stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assembly Biosciences

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Engineers Gate Manager LP boosted its stake in Assembly Biosciences by 88.5% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 17,766 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $488,000 after buying an additional 8,343 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its holdings in Assembly Biosciences by 43.7% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 34,214 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $940,000 after buying an additional 10,410 shares in the last quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Assembly Biosciences by 671.5% in the 2nd quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 433,147 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $11,903,000 after acquiring an additional 377,000 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Assembly Biosciences in the 2nd quarter worth $660,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Assembly Biosciences by 113.3% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 10,902 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 5,792 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.92% of the company's stock.

Assembly Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of ASMB stock opened at $20.57 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $26.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $418.83 million, a P/E ratio of 20.17 and a beta of 1.15. Assembly Biosciences has a fifty-two week low of $19.30 and a fifty-two week high of $39.71.

Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by $0.52. Assembly Biosciences had a negative net margin of 0.06% and a negative return on equity of 0.02%. The company had revenue of $13.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.60 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Assembly Biosciences will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Assembly Biosciences Company Profile

Assembly Biosciences, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing oral therapeutics for serious viral infections. The company's research programs target chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and herpesvirus infections, including herpes simplex virus (HSV), with the goal of addressing diseases for which existing treatments may not provide adequate cures or long-term control.

Assembly's pipeline includes novel antiviral candidates designed to interfere with essential stages of viral replication.

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