Short Interest in Belite Bio, Inc. Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:BLTE) Grows By 25.1%

Key Points

• Short interest in Belite Bio surged by 25.1% in March to 990,833 shares, equal to 2.9% of shares short and a short‑interest ratio of 5.3 days based on average trading volume.
• The stock trades near $152 with a 52‑week range of $49–$200, a market cap of $5.98 billion and a negative P/E; Belite reported ($0.38) EPS for the quarter, beating estimates.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive—six Buys, one Hold and one Sell—with multiple firms raising targets and a consensus price objective of $202.33.

Belite Bio, Inc. Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:BLTE - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 990,833 shares, an increase of 25.1% from the February 26th total of 792,323 shares. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 187,136 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.3 days.

Belite Bio Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BLTE opened at $152.07 on Monday. Belite Bio has a 52-week low of $49.00 and a 52-week high of $200.00. The company has a market capitalization of $5.98 billion, a PE ratio of -66.12 and a beta of -1.46. The company has a fifty day moving average of $170.90 and a 200-day moving average of $135.85.

Belite Bio (NASDAQ:BLTE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.38) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.56) by $0.18. On average, equities analysts forecast that Belite Bio will post -1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BLTE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Belite Bio from $191.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Needham & Company LLC set a $217.00 target price on Belite Bio in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Bank of America started coverage on Belite Bio in a research note on Monday, January 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Belite Bio from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on Belite Bio from $200.00 to $266.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $202.33.

Institutional Trading of Belite Bio

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BLTE. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Belite Bio by 11.1% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $130,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Belite Bio by 28.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,171 shares of the company's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in Belite Bio by 28,200.0% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 283 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Belite Bio during the 4th quarter worth approximately $103,000. Finally, Persistent Asset Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Belite Bio in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $108,000. 0.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Belite Bio

Belite Bio, Inc NASDAQ: BLTE is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing small molecule therapeutics for metabolic and inflammatory diseases. Leveraging a proprietary drug-discovery platform, the company aims to address conditions such as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and obesity by targeting pathways involved in fibrosis, inflammation and metabolic regulation.

Belite Bio’s pipeline includes multiple candidates in preclinical and early clinical development stages.

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