Aptose Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:APTO) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Aptose Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:APTO) (TSE:APS) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 132,000 shares, a growth of 167.2% from the August 15th total of 49,400 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 523,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.3 days. Approximately 0.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Institutional Trading of Aptose Biosciences

A hedge fund recently bought a new stake in Aptose Biosciences stock. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Aptose Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:APTO) (TSE:APS) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 12,448 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,000. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc owned approximately 0.16% of Aptose Biosciences as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on APTO. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Aptose Biosciences in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on Aptose Biosciences from $15.00 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $7.00 target price on shares of Aptose Biosciences in a research report on Friday, June 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $9.00.

Aptose Biosciences Price Performance

APTO stock opened at $0.35 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $0.52 and its 200-day moving average is $0.99. Aptose Biosciences has a 1 year low of $0.33 and a 1 year high of $3.52.

Aptose Biosciences (NASDAQ:APTO) (TSE:APS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.43) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.58) by $0.15. As a group, equities analysts predict that Aptose Biosciences will post -2.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aptose Biosciences Company Profile

Aptose Biosciences Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, discovers and develops personalized therapies addressing unmet medical needs in oncology in Canada. Its lead clinical program is APTO-253, which is a Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory hematologic malignancies.