Nantahala Capital Management LLC Makes New $8.68 Million Investment in Alector, Inc. $ALEC

Key Points

• Nantahala Capital Management bought 4.32 million Alector shares worth approximately $8.68 million, giving it a 3.87% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 85.83% of the company.
• Alector reported a quarterly loss of $0.21 per share, better than the $0.23 consensus estimate, while revenue of $3.32 million exceeded analysts’ $1.71 million forecast. Analysts expect a full-year loss of $0.87 per share.
• The stock opened at $2.34, while analyst sentiment remains mixed with an overall “Hold” rating and an average price target of $3.62; company insiders sold 115,760 shares worth about $227,734 during the quarter.

Nantahala Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 4,318,109 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,679,399. Nantahala Capital Management LLC owned about 3.87% of Alector as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ALEC. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in shares of Alector by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 256,551 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 11,618 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in Alector in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $126,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alector by 1.0% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,982,068 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,775,000 after purchasing an additional 19,970 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Alector during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd grew its stake in Alector by 125.2% during the second quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 73,338 shares of the company's stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 40,767 shares in the last quarter. 85.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alector Trading Down 2.1%

NASDAQ ALEC opened at $2.34 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $261.28 million, a PE ratio of -2.13 and a beta of 0.60. Alector, Inc. has a 1-year low of $1.09 and a 1-year high of $3.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1.84 and a 200-day moving average of $2.04. The company has a current ratio of 5.26, a quick ratio of 5.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 million. Alector had a negative net margin of 850.13% and a negative return on equity of 531.03%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alector, Inc. will post -0.87 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Arnon Rosenthal sold 87,216 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.97, for a total transaction of $171,815.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,367,206 shares in the company, valued at $4,663,395.82. This represents a 3.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Neil Lindsay Berkley sold 19,360 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.97, for a total value of $38,139.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 379,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at $748,403. The trade was a 4.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 115,760 shares of company stock worth $227,734. Corporate insiders own 8.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ALEC shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Alector from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings raised Alector from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and set a $2.00 target price on shares of Alector in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $3.62.

About Alector

Alector is a clinical-stage biotechnology company headquartered in South San Francisco, California. Founded in 2013, the company is focused on discovering and developing immuno-neurology therapies that target the innate immune system to treat a range of neurodegenerative disorders. Alector's approach aims to harness the body's natural defense mechanisms to clear pathological proteins and restore neuronal function in conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia.

The company's pipeline includes multiple product candidates in both preclinical and clinical stages, with lead programs AL001 and AL002 advancing in frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer's disease studies.

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