Myriad Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYGN) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest fell 25.1% to 8,763,576 shares as of March 31, equal to about 9.6% of shares sold short and a days-to-cover ratio of 2.9.
• Insider purchases: Director S. Louise Phanstiel bought 48,000 shares at $4.66 and CEO Samraat S. Raha bought 40,000 shares at $5.00, materially increasing their positions.
• Wall Street's consensus is a Hold with an average target of $8.94 amid recent price-target cuts; the company beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.04 vs. -$0.02) but remains unprofitable with a negative net margin and expected -0.3 EPS for the fiscal year.

Myriad Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYGN - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,763,576 shares, a decrease of 25.1% from the March 15th total of 11,699,529 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,980,202 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days. Approximately 9.6% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on MYGN shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Myriad Genetics in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Myriad Genetics from $6.50 to $6.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Myriad Genetics from $8.00 to $6.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Zacks Research raised shares of Myriad Genetics from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Myriad Genetics to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $8.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Myriad Genetics

In other news, Director S. Louise Phanstiel purchased 48,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $4.66 per share, with a total value of $223,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 281,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,313,891.66. The trade was a 20.52% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Samraat S. Raha purchased 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $5.00 per share, for a total transaction of $200,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 493,104 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,465,520. This represents a 8.83% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired 144,507 shares of company stock worth $694,548 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Myriad Genetics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MYGN. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Myriad Genetics by 2,333.3% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,672 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 4,480 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its position in Myriad Genetics by 155.6% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,365 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 2,657 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in Myriad Genetics by 1,088.7% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 4,089 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 3,745 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Myriad Genetics by 129.6% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,993 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 2,818 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Myriad Genetics during the second quarter worth about $37,000. 99.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Myriad Genetics Stock Performance

Shares of MYGN traded up $0.28 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $5.19. The company had a trading volume of 1,251,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,600,526. The firm has a market cap of $485.32 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.32 and a beta of 1.86. The business has a fifty day moving average of $4.73 and a 200-day moving average of $6.15. Myriad Genetics has a 12 month low of $3.76 and a 12 month high of $8.59. The company has a quick ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Myriad Genetics (NASDAQ:MYGN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.06. Myriad Genetics had a negative net margin of 44.38% and a negative return on equity of 6.35%. The business had revenue of $209.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $207.57 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. Myriad Genetics's revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Myriad Genetics will post -0.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Myriad Genetics Company Profile

Myriad Genetics NASDAQ: MYGN is a molecular diagnostics company that develops and commercializes genetic tests designed to assess an individual's risk for various hereditary conditions and to guide personalized treatment decisions. The company's core business centers on predictive medicine, with a focus on hereditary cancer risk assessment through its flagship BRACAnalysis® test for BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations. In addition to oncology, Myriad offers tests in women's health, neurology and pharmacogenomics to support more informed clinical decision-making.

Among its product offerings are the myRisk® Hereditary Cancer test, which screens for mutations across multiple cancer-related genes, and Prequel®, a non-invasive prenatal test for assessing fetal chromosomal abnormalities.

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