AVITA Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:RCEL) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

AVITA Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:RCEL) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,350,000 shares, an increase of 35.8% from the February 28th total of 1,730,000 shares. Currently, 9.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 215,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 10.9 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RCEL. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of AVITA Medical in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. D. Boral Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $22.00 price target on shares of AVITA Medical in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Lake Street Capital lowered their price objective on AVITA Medical from $20.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.25.

AVITA Medical Trading Down 5.4 %

NASDAQ:RCEL traded down $0.47 on Monday, reaching $8.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 88,856 shares, compared to its average volume of 186,824. The firm has a market cap of $216.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.46 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 2.47, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.39. AVITA Medical has a 12-month low of $7.51 and a 12-month high of $15.98. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $9.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.64.

AVITA Medical (NASDAQ:RCEL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported ($0.44) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.30) by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $18.41 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.40 million. AVITA Medical had a negative return on equity of 337.91% and a negative net margin of 96.26%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AVITA Medical will post -0.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AVITA Medical

In related news, Director Robert Mcnamara purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $10.09 per share, with a total value of $100,900.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 45,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $461,607.41. The trade was a 27.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.82% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AVITA Medical

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RCEL. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new stake in shares of AVITA Medical during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of AVITA Medical by 126.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 2,376 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of AVITA Medical by 48.0% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 7,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 2,324 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC raised its stake in shares of AVITA Medical by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 9,378 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 1,858 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AVITA Medical during the fourth quarter worth $135,000. 27.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AVITA Medical

AVITA Medical, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a regenerative medicine company in the United States and internationally. The company's lead product is the RECELL System, a cell harvesting device used for the treatment of thermal burn wounds, full-thickness skin defects, and repigmentation of stable depigmented vitiligo lesions.