Short Interest in Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL) Rises By 27.1%

Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 807,500 shares, an increase of 27.1% from the December 15th total of 635,400 shares. Currently, 4.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 243,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Rigel Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 16.0 %

NASDAQ RIGL traded up $2.78 on Friday, hitting $20.13. 584,497 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 287,492. Rigel Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $7.48 and a fifty-two week high of $29.82. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $21.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.70. The company has a market cap of $354.49 million, a PE ratio of 143.80 and a beta of 1.31.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on RIGL. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Rigel Pharmaceuticals from $40.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals from $15.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, B. Riley lifted their price objective on shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals from $17.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $36.20.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rigel Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals by 42.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 9,429 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 2,827 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $193,000. Empire Financial Management Company LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $231,000. PDT Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Rigel Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $322,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals by 1,199.2% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 21,008 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $340,000 after buying an additional 19,391 shares during the period. 66.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rigel Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biotechnology company, engages in discovering, developing, and providing therapies that enhance the lives of patients with hematologic disorders and cancer. The company’s commercialized products include Tavalisse, an oral spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitor for the treatment of adult patients with chronic immune thrombocytopenia; Rezlidhia, a non-intensive monotherapy for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a susceptible isocitrate dehydrogenase-1 (IDH1) mutation as detected by an FDA-approved test; and GAVRETO, a once daily, small molecule, oral, kinase inhibitor for the treatment of adult patients with metastatic rearranged during transfection (RET) fusion-positive non-small cell lung cancer, as well as for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients 12 years of age and older with advanced or metastatic RET fusion-positive thyroid cancer.