Short Interest in Galena Biopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:SLS) Increases By 39.5%

Galena Biopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:SLS - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 12,220,000 shares, an increase of 39.5% from the May 15th total of 8,760,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,910,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.4 days. Currently, 17.6% of the company's stock are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Galena Biopharma news, Director Jane Wasman acquired 20,000 shares of Galena Biopharma stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $1.69 per share, for a total transaction of $33,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 30,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at $51,376. This represents a 192.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Galena Biopharma

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Anson Funds Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Galena Biopharma by 535.7% in the first quarter. Anson Funds Management LP now owns 7,579,095 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,185,000 after acquiring an additional 6,386,829 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Galena Biopharma by 30.9% during the 1st quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 53,861 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 12,706 shares during the period. Brooklyn FI LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Galena Biopharma in the fourth quarter worth about $677,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Galena Biopharma by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 134,721 shares of the company's stock valued at $140,000 after purchasing an additional 33,878 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Galena Biopharma by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 733,546 shares of the company's stock valued at $763,000 after buying an additional 128,355 shares during the period. 17.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Galena Biopharma Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ SLS traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $1.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,541,799 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,575,516. The company has a market capitalization of $156.65 million, a PE ratio of -4.13 and a beta of 2.25. Galena Biopharma has a 52 week low of $0.77 and a 52 week high of $2.12. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $1.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1.28.

Galena Biopharma (NASDAQ:SLS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.04. Research analysts anticipate that Galena Biopharma will post -0.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Galena Biopharma

SELLAS Life Sciences Group, Inc, a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of novel cancer immunotherapies for various cancer indications in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is galinpepimut-S (GPS), a cancer immunotherapeutic agent that targets Wilms tumor 1, which is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia; and in Phase 1/2 clinical trials for the treatment for ovarian cancer.