Pacira BioSciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCRX) Stock Short Interest Drops 47.3%

Key Points

• Pacira BioSciences’ short interest fell 47.3% to 4.26 million shares as of October 15, representing 11.4% of shares outstanding and a 1.1-day days-to-cover ratio.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but centers on “Hold”: nine analysts rate the stock Hold, versus one Buy and one Sell, with an average price target of $33.33.
• The stock traded at $36.39, near its 52-week high of $36.67, after the company beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates; institutional investors own a substantial 99.73% of shares.

Pacira BioSciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCRX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 4,260,076 shares, a decline of 47.3% from the September 30th total of 8,076,461 shares. Approximately 11.4% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 3,933,128 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.1 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on PCRX. Needham & Company LLC downgraded Pacira BioSciences from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Pacira BioSciences in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Pacira BioSciences from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Pacira BioSciences from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $36.50 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Pacira BioSciences from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, September 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pacira BioSciences

In other Pacira BioSciences news, SVP Lauren Riker sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.32, for a total value of $217,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 62,284 shares in the company, valued at $2,262,154.88. This represents a 8.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jonathan Slonin sold 3,040 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.23, for a total transaction of $70,619.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 216,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,026,600.32. The trade was a 1.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 6.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pacira BioSciences

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new position in Pacira BioSciences in the second quarter valued at about $2,399,000. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pacira BioSciences in the second quarter worth $2,369,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Pacira BioSciences in the 2nd quarter worth $7,532,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Pacira BioSciences during the second quarter worth about $6,089,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Pacira BioSciences by 31.0% in the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 203,520 shares of the company's stock worth $5,163,000 after buying an additional 48,124 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.73% of the company's stock.

Pacira BioSciences Price Performance

Shares of PCRX stock remained flat at $36.39 on Friday. 737,237 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,667,213. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 3.94 and a current ratio of 5.04. The company has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a PE ratio of 103.97 and a beta of 0.25. Pacira BioSciences has a 52 week low of $18.80 and a 52 week high of $36.67. The company's 50-day moving average is $29.06 and its 200 day moving average is $24.82.

Pacira BioSciences (NASDAQ:PCRX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $192.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.06 million. Pacira BioSciences had a net margin of 1.96% and a return on equity of 9.68%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Pacira BioSciences will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Pacira BioSciences

Pacira BioSciences, Inc is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing non-opioid pain-management and regenerative health solutions. The company's products are designed to address acute postsurgical pain and osteoarthritis-related pain while supporting efforts to reduce reliance on opioid medications.

Pacira's lead product is EXPAREL, an extended-release formulation of bupivacaine administered by injection for postsurgical pain management. The company also markets ZILRETTA, an extended-release corticosteroid injection indicated for osteoarthritis knee pain, and iovera°, a cryoanalgesia system that uses controlled cooling to temporarily block peripheral nerves and relieve pain.

Formerly known as Pacira Pharmaceuticals, the company adopted the Pacira BioSciences name to reflect its broader focus on innovative pain and regenerative-health therapies.

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