Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS) Shares Down 8.1% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Aclaris Therapeutics shares fell 8.1% to about $5.26, with trading volume roughly 84% below the average session volume.
• Despite the decline, analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $11.33, more than double the current share price.
• The company slightly beat quarterly expectations, reporting a $0.15 loss per share versus the projected $0.16 loss and $1.63 million in revenue; however, it continues to face substantial losses and negative margins.

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded down 8.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $5.32 and last traded at $5.2550. Approximately 320,982 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 2,002,963 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.72.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ACRS shares. Lifesci Capital started coverage on Aclaris Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $13.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in a report on Monday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on Aclaris Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aclaris Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $11.33.

Aclaris Therapeutics Trading Down 10.1%

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $5.80 and a 200-day moving average of $4.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $719.37 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.87 and a beta of 0.79.

Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 million. Aclaris Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 61.65% and a negative net margin of 921.50%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $53,096,000. Rock Springs Capital Management LP boosted its position in Aclaris Therapeutics by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Rock Springs Capital Management LP now owns 4,472,650 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $16,772,000 after acquiring an additional 18,909 shares during the period. Braidwell LP increased its holdings in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics by 26.1% in the 2nd quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 2,142,348 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $11,333,000 after purchasing an additional 443,232 shares during the period. Palo Alto Investors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics during the second quarter worth approximately $8,535,045. Finally, Kalehua Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics during the first quarter worth approximately $6,871,000. 98.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aclaris Therapeutics Company Profile

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: ACRS is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for immune-mediated and inflammatory diseases. The company's research programs are centered on potentially addressing conditions in which existing treatments have limited effectiveness or tolerability.

Aclaris has developed a pipeline that has included zunsemetinib, an oral mitogen-activated protein kinase-activated protein kinase 2 (MK2) inhibitor being studied for inflammatory diseases, and other small-molecule therapies targeting immune and inflammatory pathways.

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