Oric Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORIC) Short Interest Down 45.0% in July

Key Points

• The short interest for Oric Pharmaceuticals dropped by **45.0%** in July, with a total of **6,760,000 shares** short sold as of July 31st.
• Analysts have varying ratings for the stock, with a **consensus rating of "Moderate Buy"** and an average price target of **$17.63**.
• Insider transactions showed significant activity, with the CFO selling **32,466 shares** and a director acquiring **26,597 shares**, indicating mixed insider sentiment.

Oric Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORIC - Get Free Report) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 6,760,000 shares, adropof45.0% from the July 15th total of 12,290,000 shares. Approximately8.5% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,330,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.1 days. Based on an average daily volume of 1,330,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.1 days. Approximately8.5% of the company's stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals from $15.00 to $12.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oric Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $17.63.

Insider Transactions at Oric Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CFO Dominic Piscitelli sold 32,466 shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.50, for a total value of $340,893.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 68,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at $717,328.50. The trade was a 32.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Angie You acquired 26,597 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.39 per share, for a total transaction of $249,745.83. Following the transaction, the director owned 26,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $249,745.83. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 40,000 shares of company stock worth $416,289 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.55% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oric Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORIC. Alkeon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals by 12.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 4,504,096 shares of the company's stock worth $45,717,000 after purchasing an additional 500,000 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,215,887 shares of the company's stock worth $17,945,000 after purchasing an additional 12,098 shares during the last quarter. Vivo Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals by 50.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vivo Capital LLC now owns 3,126,604 shares of the company's stock worth $31,735,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,154 shares during the last quarter. Boxer Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $13,982,000. Finally, MPM Bioimpact LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals by 23.6% during the 2nd quarter. MPM Bioimpact LLC now owns 1,729,378 shares of the company's stock worth $17,553,000 after purchasing an additional 329,864 shares during the last quarter. 95.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oric Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ORIC traded up $0.23 during trading on Monday, hitting $9.89. 181,610 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,109,039. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $10.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.06. Oric Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $3.90 and a 12-month high of $14.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $960.52 million, a P/E ratio of -5.23 and a beta of 1.69.

Oric Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ORIC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.47) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.46) by ($0.01). As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Oric Pharmaceuticals will post -2.17 EPS for the current year.

About Oric Pharmaceuticals

ORIC Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the discovery and development of therapies for treatment of cancers in the United States. Its clinical stage product candidates include ORIC-114, a brain penetrant orally bioavailable irreversible inhibitor, currently under Phase 1b study, which is designed to selectively target epidermal growth factor receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 with high potency towards exon 20 insertion mutations; ORIC-944, an allosteric inhibitor of the polycomb repressive complex 2 for prostate cancer, currently under Phase 1b study; and ORIC-533, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of CD73, currently under Phase 1b study, being developed for resistance to chemotherapy- and immunotherapy-based treatment regimens.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.