Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) Short Interest Update

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 209,287 shares, a decline of 25.9% from the January 29th total of 282,525 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 87,228 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days. Currently, 3.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Currently, 3.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 87,228 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Atara Biotherapeutics Price Performance

Shares of Atara Biotherapeutics stock opened at $5.42 on Wednesday. Atara Biotherapeutics has a 1 year low of $3.92 and a 1 year high of $19.15. The firm has a market cap of $39.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.49 and a beta of -0.44. The company has a 50-day moving average of $7.99 and a 200 day moving average of $11.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Innovation Ltd Panacea sold 80,554 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.07, for a total value of $488,962.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,324,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,039,387.22. The trade was a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atara Biotherapeutics

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Atara Biotherapeutics by 6.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 203,438 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,915,000 after acquiring an additional 12,677 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in Atara Biotherapeutics by 28.4% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 148,632 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,689,000 after acquiring an additional 32,836 shares during the last quarter. Globeflex Capital L P boosted its position in Atara Biotherapeutics by 399.6% in the fourth quarter. Globeflex Capital L P now owns 77,224 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,397,000 after purchasing an additional 61,766 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 183.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 63,816 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $914,000 after purchasing an additional 41,302 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 60,136 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 1,457 shares during the last quarter. 70.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. New Street Research set a $6.00 price target on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective (down from $25.00) on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $6.00.

About Atara Biotherapeutics

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel T-cell immunotherapies to transform the treatment of cancer and autoimmune disease. Headquartered in South San Francisco, California, Atara leverages its proprietary off-the-shelf allogeneic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-directed T-cell platform to generate engineered cell therapies designed to target EBV-driven malignancies and immune-mediated disorders.

The company’s lead product candidate, tabelecleucel, is an off-the-shelf, EBV-specific T-cell therapy in clinical development for the treatment of EBV-positive post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD) and other EBV-associated cancers.