Short Interest in Xenetic Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:XBIO) Drops By 17.1%

Xenetic Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:XBIO) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 41,648 shares, a decline of 17.1% from the February 26th total of 50,255 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 26,424 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days. Currently, 2.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Xenetic Biosciences Price Performance

Shares of Xenetic Biosciences stock opened at $2.68 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $2.85. Xenetic Biosciences has a fifty-two week low of $1.90 and a fifty-two week high of $13.93. The firm has a market cap of $6.14 million, a P/E ratio of -1.69 and a beta of 2.26.

Xenetic Biosciences (NASDAQ:XBIO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.52) by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $0.77 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.69 million. Xenetic Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 51.27% and a negative net margin of 90.09%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Xenetic Biosciences will post -1.01 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xenetic Biosciences

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Xenetic Biosciences stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in Xenetic Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:XBIO) by 516.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 178,509 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 149,559 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 7.80% of Xenetic Biosciences worth $387,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Institutional investors own 15.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Xenetic Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Xenetic Biosciences Company Profile

Xenetic Biosciences, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of enhanced protein and peptide therapeutics for oncology, immunology and rare diseases. The company leverages its proprietary platforms to extend the half-life, improve the stability and optimize the delivery of biopharmaceuticals. Xenetic’s pipeline includes novel candidates designed to address unmet medical needs in solid tumors and inherited disorders.

At the heart of Xenetic’s technology portfolio are two complementary platforms: PolyXen, which employs a unique polysialylation process to prolong drug circulation and reduce immunogenicity, and Alphabody, a next-generation antibody-mimetic framework engineered for high-affinity binding to challenging targets.