Weiss Ratings Reiterates Sell (D-) Rating for Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reiterated its Sell (D-) rating for Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST), while several other firms have shown varied sentiment, with Zacks upgrading it to a Hold and Lifesci Capital giving it a Strong Buy rating.
• The stock's current price target consensus is $10.50, reflecting a Moderate Buy rating from analysts with fluctuating positions from various research firms.
• Aquestive Therapeutics reported an adjusted earnings per share of ($0.14), beating estimates, but missed revenue expectations with $10.00 million reported for the quarter.

Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d-)" rating reiterated by equities research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on AQST. Zacks Research raised Aquestive Therapeutics from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Lifesci Capital upgraded Aquestive Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $10.00 price objective on shares of Aquestive Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Aquestive Therapeutics from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Aquestive Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $10.50.

Aquestive Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AQST traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $6.20. The company had a trading volume of 4,521,313 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,838,649. The stock has a market capitalization of $618.26 million, a P/E ratio of -8.86 and a beta of 1.77. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $4.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.63. Aquestive Therapeutics has a one year low of $2.12 and a one year high of $6.43.

Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.04. The company had revenue of $10.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.32 million. Aquestive Therapeutics has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Aquestive Therapeutics will post -0.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Aquestive Therapeutics

In other Aquestive Therapeutics news, COO Cassie Jung sold 62,180 shares of Aquestive Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total transaction of $310,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 283,346 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,416,730. The trade was a 18.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel Barber sold 91,343 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.03, for a total transaction of $550,798.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 923,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,568,282.90. This trade represents a 9.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 178,923 shares of company stock valued at $1,006,598 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 7.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aquestive Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Aquestive Therapeutics by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 47,098 shares of the company's stock valued at $156,000 after buying an additional 2,649 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 78.3% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 9,413 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 4,134 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Aquestive Therapeutics by 16.6% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 32,073 shares of the company's stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 4,557 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Aquestive Therapeutics by 31.1% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 20,052 shares of the company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 4,752 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Aquestive Therapeutics by 10.7% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 53,096 shares of the company's stock worth $154,000 after acquiring an additional 5,152 shares during the period. 32.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Aquestive Therapeutics

Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc operates as a pharmaceutical company in the United States and internationally. The company markets Sympazan, an oral soluble film formulation of clobazam for the treatment of lennox-gastaut syndrome; Suboxone, a sublingual film formulation of buprenorphine and naloxone for the treatment of opioid dependence; Zuplenz, an oral soluble film formulation of ondansetron for the treatment of nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy and post-operative recovery; and Azstarys, a once-daily product for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

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