Bank of America Corp DE Acquires New Holdings in Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. $AQST

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 1.67 million shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in the second quarter, worth approximately $6.94 million and representing a 1.33% stake. Other institutions also increased exposure, bringing total institutional ownership to 32.45%.
• AQST reported quarterly revenue of $13.82 million, exceeding estimates of $11.42 million, but its loss of $0.18 per share was wider than the expected $0.10 loss. Analysts project a full-year loss of approximately $0.50 per share.
• The stock opened at $4.68, while analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $9.17. Insiders own 6.81% of the company, although the CEO and another insider recently sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AQST - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,668,423 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,941,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned 1.33% of Aquestive Therapeutics at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Owl Capital Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $3,923,000. Latash Investments LLC bought a new stake in Aquestive Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $1,011,000. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in Aquestive Therapeutics by 57.8% in the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 1,385,843 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,765,000 after buying an additional 507,527 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Aquestive Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,569,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Aquestive Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,175,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 32.45% of the company's stock.

Aquestive Therapeutics Price Performance

Aquestive Therapeutics stock opened at $4.68 on Monday. Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2.93 and a 12-month high of $7.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $587.39 million, a PE ratio of -7.20 and a beta of 1.48. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4.30.

Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $13.82 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.42 million. On average, analysts forecast that Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Daniel Barber sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.82, for a total value of $120,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 652,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,144,167.94. This trade represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Sherry Korczynski sold 8,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.22, for a total transaction of $45,675.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 235,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,230,296.58. This represents a 3.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 6.81% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on AQST shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Aquestive Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $11.00 price objective on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $10.00 target price on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, August 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $9.17.

Aquestive Therapeutics Profile

Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing medicines delivered through its PharmFilm technology. The company's dissolvable oral-film platform is designed to provide alternatives to conventional tablets, capsules and injectable therapies, with potential benefits for patients who have difficulty swallowing or require rapid, convenient administration.

Aquestive's commercial products include Exservan, an oral film formulation of riluzole for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Libervant, a buccal film formulation of diazepam for the acute treatment of intermittent, stereotypic episodes of frequent seizure activity; and Sympazan, an oral film formulation of clonazepam for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

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