Altimmune Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:ALT)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Traders bought 8,671 Altimmune call options, about 83% above the stock’s average daily call volume.
• Shares rose 2.1% to $3.17, though trading volume was below average. Altimmune remains unprofitable, with analysts projecting a full-year loss of $0.58 per share.
• Institutional ownership is high at 78.05%, while analyst sentiment is broadly positive: seven analysts rate the stock a Buy, with an average price target of $14.33 versus the current price.

Altimmune, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALT - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders bought 8,671 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 83% compared to the average daily volume of 4,736 call options.

Altimmune Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of ALT stock traded up $0.07 on Tuesday, hitting $3.17. The stock had a trading volume of 964,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,360,546. The company's 50 day moving average price is $2.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.28. Altimmune has a 1 year low of $2.56 and a 1 year high of $6.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 26.78 and a quick ratio of 26.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $617.60 million, a P/E ratio of -4.07 and a beta of 0.27.

Altimmune (NASDAQ:ALT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.02. Altimmune had a negative net margin of 214,860.98% and a negative return on equity of 31.41%. Analysts anticipate that Altimmune will post -0.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Altimmune

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Altimmune by 23.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,373,638 shares of the company's stock worth $24,029,000 after buying an additional 1,206,514 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Altimmune by 42.2% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,119,703 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,482,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518,448 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Altimmune by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,292,410 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,278,000 after purchasing an additional 275,025 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its position in shares of Altimmune by 356.6% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,996,848 shares of the company's stock worth $7,528,000 after purchasing an additional 1,559,562 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Altimmune by 140.0% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,349,293 shares of the company's stock worth $4,871,000 after purchasing an additional 787,036 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on ALT shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Altimmune from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Leerink Partners started coverage on Altimmune in a report on Monday, June 22nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $10.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Altimmune in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Citigroup reissued a "market outperform" rating on shares of Altimmune in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Citizens Jmp lowered their price target on Altimmune from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altimmune currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $14.33.

About Altimmune

Altimmune, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, dedicated to the development of vaccines and immunotherapeutics. The company leverages proprietary technology platforms to create intranasal vaccine candidates and novel therapies targeting liver diseases and metabolic disorders. Altimmune's approach emphasizes the stimulation of both systemic and mucosal immune responses to address unmet medical needs in infectious and chronic conditions.

Among its lead programs, NasoVAX is an investigational intranasal influenza vaccine designed to provide broad, long-lasting protection through a single, non-invasive dose.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source