Simplify Asset Management Inc. Sells 500,000 Shares of Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. $ACHV

Simplify Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHV) by 34.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 932,105 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 500,000 shares during the quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Achieve Life Sciences were worth $7,541,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Achieve Life Sciences during the second quarter valued at about $49,725,000. venBio Partners LLC bought a new stake in Achieve Life Sciences during the second quarter worth about $38,623,122. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Achieve Life Sciences during the second quarter worth about $34,426,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in shares of Achieve Life Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth about $17,964,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Achieve Life Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth about $12,575,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.52% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Achieve Life Sciences news, Director Richard Stewart sold 20,626 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.49, for a total transaction of $175,114.74. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 208,249 shares in the company, valued at $1,768,034.01. This represents a 9.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on ACHV. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Achieve Life Sciences in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $13.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Achieve Life Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $18.00 target price on Achieve Life Sciences and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $15.50.

Achieve Life Sciences Price Performance

Shares of Achieve Life Sciences stock opened at $6.85 on Thursday. Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2.62 and a 52-week high of $8.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $704.88 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.42 and a beta of 2.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $7.50 and a 200-day moving average of $5.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.80) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by ($0.64). Equities research analysts expect that Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. will post -0.92 EPS for the current year.

About Achieve Life Sciences

Achieve Life Sciences, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing cytisinicline, a therapy designed to help adults quit smoking and overcome nicotine addiction. Cytisinicline is an oral, plant-based small molecule that partially activates nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, with the goal of reducing nicotine cravings and withdrawal symptoms.

The company has evaluated cytisinicline in clinical studies involving adults who smoke cigarettes, including trials assessing smoking cessation and cessation of electronic cigarette use.