Short Interest in Liquidia Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDA) Grows By 22.9%

Liquidia Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDA - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 16,590,000 shares, an increase of 22.9% from the May 15th total of 13,500,000 shares. Approximately 28.0% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,700,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 9.8 days.

Liquidia Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of Liquidia Technologies stock traded down $0.47 on Friday, reaching $13.17. 1,905,125 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,219,497. Liquidia Technologies has a 1-year low of $8.26 and a 1-year high of $19.41. The company has a current ratio of 2.93, a quick ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $15.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of -8.34 and a beta of 0.04.

Liquidia Technologies (NASDAQ:LQDA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.45) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.42) by ($0.03). Liquidia Technologies had a negative return on equity of 177.91% and a negative net margin of 903.80%. The firm had revenue of $3.12 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Liquidia Technologies will post -1.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LQDA. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on shares of Liquidia Technologies from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Liquidia Technologies from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Liquidia Technologies in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Oppenheimer set a $13.00 target price on shares of Liquidia Technologies and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Liquidia Technologies from $29.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.89.

Insider Transactions at Liquidia Technologies

In related news, insider Jason Adair sold 1,856 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.57, for a total value of $25,185.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 184,304 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,501,005.28. The trade was a 1.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Roger Jeffs sold 14,130 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.57, for a total transaction of $191,744.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,006,420 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,657,119.40. This trade represents a 1.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 33,138 shares of company stock valued at $450,233. Insiders own 26.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LQDA. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Liquidia Technologies by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 31,243 shares of the company's stock worth $367,000 after buying an additional 1,277 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in Liquidia Technologies by 53.4% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 51,075 shares of the company's stock worth $601,000 after buying an additional 17,790 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Liquidia Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $218,000. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in Liquidia Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $526,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Liquidia Technologies by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 428,570 shares of the company's stock worth $5,040,000 after buying an additional 38,313 shares during the period. 64.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Liquidia Technologies Company Profile

Liquidia Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and commercializes various products for unmet patient needs in the United States. Its lead product candidates include YUTREPIA, an inhaled dry powder formulation of treprostinil for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD).