Short Interest in Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS) Expands By 16.1%

Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,700,000 shares, an increase of 16.1% from the March 15th total of 4,910,000 shares. Currently, 11.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,980,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Emergent BioSolutions Trading Down 5.9 %

Shares of EBS stock traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $2.06. 1,008,941 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,187,517. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $2.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2.31. Emergent BioSolutions has a 1-year low of $1.42 and a 1-year high of $12.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $107.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.14 and a beta of 1.20.

Emergent BioSolutions (NYSE:EBS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.77) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.33) by ($0.44). The business had revenue of $276.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $247.63 million. Emergent BioSolutions had a negative return on equity of 37.35% and a negative net margin of 72.11%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.31) earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Emergent BioSolutions will post -13.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Emergent BioSolutions

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Emergent BioSolutions by 0.9% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,246,020 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $4,236,000 after acquiring an additional 11,573 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Emergent BioSolutions by 356.2% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 834,372 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,002,000 after purchasing an additional 651,480 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of Emergent BioSolutions by 295.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 75,133 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 56,129 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Emergent BioSolutions during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Emergent BioSolutions by 44.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,561,050 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $5,308,000 after buying an additional 482,632 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $5.00 price target on shares of Emergent BioSolutions in a report on Thursday.

Emergent BioSolutions Company Profile

Emergent BioSolutions Inc, a life sciences company, provides preparedness and response solutions for accidental, deliberate, and naturally occurring public health threats in the United States. The company offers NARCAN Nasal Spray for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose; Vaxchora vaccine for the prevention of cholera; Vivotif vaccine for oral administration for the prevention of typhoid fever; Anthrasil for the treatment of inhalational anthrax; BioThrax, an anthrax vaccine; CYFENDUS for post-exposure prophylaxis of disease following suspected or confirmed exposure to Bacillus anthracis; and Raxibacumab injection for the treatment and prophylaxis of inhalational anthrax.

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