Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV) Shares Down 6.8% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Achieve Life Sciences shares fell 6.8% to approximately $6.37 in mid-day trading, with volume down 65% from the average session.
• Analyst opinions remain mixed, but the overall consensus is “Buy” with a $15.50 target price; ratings range from Strong Buy and Buy to Sell and Strong Sell.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.80 per share, missing estimates by $0.64. An insider also sold 20,626 shares, while several institutional investors established new positions in the stock.

Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHV - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 6.8% during mid-day trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $6.44 and last traded at $6.3650. Approximately 475,831 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 65% from the average session volume of 1,352,472 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.83.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ACHV. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Achieve Life Sciences in a report on Thursday, August 13th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered Achieve Life Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $18.00 target price on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $15.50.

Achieve Life Sciences Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $663.19 million, a P/E ratio of -4.16 and a beta of 2.42. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $7.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.65.

Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.80) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by ($0.64). As a group, analysts expect that Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. will post -0.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Achieve Life Sciences

In other news, Director Richard Stewart sold 20,626 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.49, for a total transaction of $175,114.74. Following the transaction, the director owned 208,249 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,768,034.01. This represents a 9.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACHV. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Achieve Life Sciences in the 2nd quarter valued at about $49,725,000. venBio Partners LLC purchased a new position in Achieve Life Sciences during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,623,122. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Achieve Life Sciences during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,426,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in Achieve Life Sciences in the second quarter worth approximately $17,964,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new position in Achieve Life Sciences in the second quarter worth approximately $12,575,000. 33.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Achieve Life Sciences Company Profile

Achieve Life Sciences, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing cytisinicline, a therapy designed to help adults quit smoking and overcome nicotine addiction. Cytisinicline is an oral, plant-based small molecule that partially activates nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, with the goal of reducing nicotine cravings and withdrawal symptoms.

The company has evaluated cytisinicline in clinical studies involving adults who smoke cigarettes, including trials assessing smoking cessation and cessation of electronic cigarette use.

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