Short Interest in Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL) Grows By 140.8%

Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,350,000 shares, an increase of 140.8% from the January 31st total of 560,700 shares. Approximately 7.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 254,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.3 days.

Rigel Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 5.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:RIGL traded up $1.28 during trading on Friday, reaching $23.06. The stock had a trading volume of 276,395 shares, compared to its average volume of 236,336. The company has a market capitalization of $406.20 million, a P/E ratio of 164.73 and a beta of 1.34. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.22. Rigel Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $7.48 and a one year high of $29.82.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RIGL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Rigel Pharmaceuticals from $15.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals from $40.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals from $15.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, B. Riley upped their target price on shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals from $17.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rigel Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP David A. Santos sold 2,125 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.92, for a total transaction of $44,455.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 53,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,220. This trade represents a 3.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Raul R. Rodriguez sold 4,952 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.92, for a total value of $103,595.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 243,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,101,425.68. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,113 shares of company stock valued at $190,644 in the last three months. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Rigel Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its stake in shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals by 44.5% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 8,603 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $145,000 after acquiring an additional 2,648 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Rigel Pharmaceuticals by 42.8% in the fourth 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 period. Graham Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in Rigel Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $170,000. Finally, Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rigel Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $181,000. 66.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Rigel Pharmaceuticals

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.