Athira Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:LONA) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Athira Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:LONA) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 87,344 shares, an increase of 355.7% from the September 30th total of 19,166 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 726,433 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.1 days. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Athira Pharma Stock Up 2.7%

Shares of NASDAQ LONA opened at $4.89 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.16 and a beta of 2.11. Athira Pharma has a 52 week low of $2.21 and a 52 week high of $14.21.

Athira Pharma (NASDAQ:LONA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The company reported ($0.80) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.20). As a group, equities research analysts expect that Athira Pharma will post -2.67 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LONA has been the topic of several research reports. Mizuho decreased their target price on Athira Pharma from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Citizens Jmp dropped their price target on Athira Pharma from $18.00 to $17.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Athira Pharma to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Athira Pharma in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.33.

About Athira Pharma

Athira Pharma is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing regenerative therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. Its research has centered on treatments intended to activate the hepatocyte growth factor pathway, which may support neuronal health, repair, and regeneration.

The company’s lead investigational product is fosgonimeton, formerly known as ATH-1017, an intravenous therapy developed for potential use in Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative conditions.