Sphera Funds Management LTD. Cuts Position in Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC)

Sphera Funds Management LTD. cut its position in shares of Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC - Free Report) by 47.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 324,639 shares of the company's stock after selling 295,361 shares during the period. Sphera Funds Management LTD. owned 0.33% of Alector worth $614,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RA Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Alector during the 4th quarter worth about $18,324,000. 5AM Venture Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alector in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,882,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Alector by 63.0% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 915,738 shares of the company's stock worth $1,731,000 after buying an additional 353,988 shares during the period. Almitas Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Alector in the 4th quarter worth about $538,000. Finally, Boothbay Fund Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alector by 562.5% during the 4th quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 294,156 shares of the company's stock valued at $556,000 after acquiring an additional 249,756 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.83% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ALEC shares. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on shares of Alector from $7.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $1.50 price target (down previously from $3.00) on shares of Alector in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Alector currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $4.00.

Alector Stock Down 6.2%

NASDAQ:ALEC traded down $0.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $1.29. 659,626 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 846,461. Alector, Inc. has a 1 year low of $0.87 and a 1 year high of $6.78. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.49 million, a P/E ratio of -0.76 and a beta of 0.76.

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.61) by $0.59. Alector had a negative return on equity of 108.77% and a negative net margin of 257.54%. The firm had revenue of $54.24 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.41 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Alector, Inc. will post -1.88 EPS for the current year.

Alector Company Profile

Alector, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, develops therapies for the treatment of neurodegeneration diseases. Its products include AL001, an immune activity in the brain with genetic links to multiple neurodegenerative disorders, which is in Phase III clinical trial for the treatment of frontotemporal dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diseases; and AL101 that is in Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.