Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest in Kezar Life Sciences fell 24.7% in April to 151,602 shares (about 2.3% of the stock), leaving a short-interest ratio of 1.4 days based on average daily volume.
• Institutional investors own 67.9% of the company, with several hedge funds building positions and Dimensional Fund Advisors increasing its stake by 14.3% to 26,543 shares.
• Shares traded at $7.30 (market cap ~$53.8M), and Kezar reported Q1 EPS of ($1.99), missing estimates of ($1.39); analysts forecast ~-2.24 EPS for the fiscal year.

Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR - Get Free Report) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 151,602 shares, a drop of 24.7% from the March 31st total of 201,330 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 111,798 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kezar Life Sciences

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Kezar Life Sciences during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. Torno Capital LLC acquired a new position in Kezar Life Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at about $126,000. Nano Cap New Millennium Growth Fund L P acquired a new position in Kezar Life Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at about $157,000. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in Kezar Life Sciences during the 1st quarter valued at about $125,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Kezar Life Sciences by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 26,543 shares of the company's stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 3,312 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.90% of the company's stock.

Kezar Life Sciences Price Performance

Shares of KZR traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $7.30. The stock had a trading volume of 67,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 64,884. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.82 million, a P/E ratio of -0.95 and a beta of 0.43. Kezar Life Sciences has a 1-year low of $3.53 and a 1-year high of $7.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.45.

Kezar Life Sciences (NASDAQ:KZR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 27th. The company reported ($1.99) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.39) by ($0.60). Equities analysts predict that Kezar Life Sciences will post -2.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kezar Life Sciences Company Profile

Kezar Life Sciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of novel small-molecule therapies that modulate the innate immune system. The company's research centers on selective inhibition of the immunoproteasome, a key protein complex involved in antigen processing and secretion of inflammatory cytokines. By targeting this pathway, Kezar aims to address unmet medical needs in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases with high specificity and a favorable safety profile.

The company's lead development candidate, KZR-616, is a selective immunoproteasome inhibitor being evaluated in multiple clinical trials for autoimmune conditions such as systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus nephritis, polymyositis and dermatomyositis.

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