Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS) Shares Purchased by Decheng Capital LLC

Key Points

• Decheng Capital LLC increased its holdings in Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. by 78.3%, acquiring an additional 1,775,069 shares to own a total of 4,041,736 shares.
• Aclaris Therapeutics reported a quarterly EPS of ($0.12), surpassing analyst expectations of ($0.19) and is projected to post a -0.82 EPS for the current year.
• Hedge funds and institutional investors own 98.34% of Aclaris Therapeutics, indicating strong institutional interest in the stock.

Decheng Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS - Free Report) by 78.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,041,736 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,775,069 shares during the period. Aclaris Therapeutics accounts for 1.7% of Decheng Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Decheng Capital LLC owned 3.73% of Aclaris Therapeutics worth $6,184,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ACRS. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 78,782 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 21,022 shares in the last quarter. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Aclaris Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $57,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Aclaris Therapeutics by 71.5% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 681,553 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,043,000 after purchasing an additional 284,191 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Aclaris Therapeutics by 253.9% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 40,700 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $101,000 after purchasing an additional 29,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. 98.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ACRS shares. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $8.00 price target on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Aclaris Therapeutics from $15.00 to $9.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Aclaris Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $6.00 target price on the stock. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Aclaris Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $8.71.

Aclaris Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ACRS remained flat at $1.53 during trading hours on Friday. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,071,643 shares, compared to its average volume of 991,202. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $1.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1.66. Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $1.05 and a 52 week high of $5.17. The firm has a market cap of $165.67 million, a P/E ratio of -1.10 and a beta of 0.38.

Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.19) by $0.07. Aclaris Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 30.73% and a negative net margin of 732.42%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aclaris Therapeutics Company Profile

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of novel drug candidates for immune-inflammatory diseases in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Therapeutics and Contract Research. The Therapeutics segment is involved in identifying and developing therapies to address significant unmet needs for immuno-inflammatory diseases.