Short Interest in Perpetua Resources Corp. (NASDAQ:PPTA) Grows By 35.2%

Perpetua Resources Corp. (NASDAQ:PPTA - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,570,000 shares, a growth of 35.2% from the April 30th total of 3,380,000 shares. Currently, 6.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,100,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.2 days.

Perpetua Resources Stock Up 0.8%

NASDAQ:PPTA traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $17.18. 968,507 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 712,611. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -78.09 and a beta of 0.02. Perpetua Resources has a 52 week low of $5.01 and a 52 week high of $17.88. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.60.

Perpetua Resources (NASDAQ:PPTA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 9th. The company reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.05) by ($0.07). As a group, analysts expect that Perpetua Resources will post -0.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Michael Stephen Wright sold 6,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.85, for a total value of $90,025.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,195 shares in the company, valued at $196,600.75. This represents a 31.41% 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. Also, insider Mckinsey Margaret Lyon sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.00, for a total value of $220,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 89,154 shares in the company, valued at $980,694. This represents a 18.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Perpetua Resources during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Perpetua Resources by 1,658.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,308 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 4,063 shares in the last quarter. North Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Perpetua Resources during the 1st quarter valued at $53,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new stake in Perpetua Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Perpetua Resources during the 1st quarter valued at $76,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on PPTA shares. HC Wainwright reduced their target price on Perpetua Resources from $28.00 to $27.50 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. National Bankshares reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Perpetua Resources in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Perpetua Resources to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st.

About Perpetua Resources

Perpetua Resources Corp. engages in the exploration and development of mineral properties in the United States. The company primarily explores for gold, silver, and antimony deposits. Its principal asset is the 100% owned Stibnite Gold project, which includes 1,672 unpatented lode claims, mill sites, and patented land holdings covering an area of approximately 11,548 hectares located in Valley County, Idaho.