Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC) saw a large growth in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 4,150,000 shares, a growth of 19.9% from the September 15th total of 3,460,000 shares. Currently, 5.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 553,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 7.5 days.

Alector Trading Up 3.5 %

NASDAQ:ALEC opened at $5.07 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.20. The stock has a market cap of $488.67 million, a P/E ratio of -3.67 and a beta of 0.68. Alector has a 1-year low of $3.66 and a 1-year high of $8.90.

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.40) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.49) by $0.09. Alector had a negative return on equity of 102.63% and a negative net margin of 290.66%. The company had revenue of $15.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.04 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.02 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alector will post -1.92 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of Alector in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Alector in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.75.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Arnon Rosenthal sold 26,499 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total transaction of $129,315.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,948,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,509,880.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Marc Grasso sold 7,297 shares of Alector stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total value of $35,609.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 130,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $638,011.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Arnon Rosenthal sold 26,499 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total transaction of $129,315.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,948,746 shares in the company, valued at $9,509,880.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 58,222 shares of company stock worth $286,013 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 9.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ALEC. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Alector in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Alector in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alector during the 1st quarter valued at $59,000. Creative Planning grew its holdings in shares of Alector by 54.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 19,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 6,723 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caxton Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of Alector by 41.3% during the 2nd quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 20,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 5,933 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.83% of the company’s stock.

About Alector

Alector, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, develops therapies for the treatment of neurodegeneration diseases. Its products include AL001, an immune activity in the brain with genetic links to multiple neurodegenerative disorders, which is in Phase III clinical trial for the treatment of frontotemporal dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diseases; and AL101 that is in Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.