MediciNova, Inc. (NASDAQ:MNOV) Short Interest Update

MediciNova, Inc. (NASDAQ:MNOV) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 168,023 shares, a drop of 16.4% from the March 31st total of 201,034 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 35,121 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.8 days. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MNOV has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Lucid Cap Mkts upgraded MediciNova to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. HC Wainwright assumed coverage on MediciNova in a research report on Monday, March 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. Maxim Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective on shares of MediciNova in a report on Monday, March 23rd. D. Boral Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $9.00 price objective on shares of MediciNova in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of MediciNova in a report on Friday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $7.50.

Institutional Trading of MediciNova

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MediciNova in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Citadel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MediciNova in the 3rd quarter worth $92,000. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MediciNova in the 4th quarter worth $214,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of MediciNova by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 193,698 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 19,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, StoneX Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MediciNova in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. 9.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MediciNova Trading Up 0.7%

MNOV stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $1.40. The stock had a trading volume of 15,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 24,222. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $1.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.45. The company has a market cap of $68.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.83 and a beta of 0.63. MediciNova has a 52-week low of $1.17 and a 52-week high of $1.96.

MediciNova (NASDAQ:MNOV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $0.15 million during the quarter. Sell-side analysts predict that MediciNova will post -0.26 EPS for the current year.

About MediciNova

MediciNova, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel small-molecule therapeutics for neurodegenerative, inflammatory, fibrotic and oncological diseases. Founded in the late 1990s, the company advances its proprietary compounds through clinical trials and strategic partnerships, with a goal of addressing areas of high unmet medical need. MediciNova is headquartered in San Diego, California, and maintains a presence in Tokyo to support collaborations and regulatory interactions in Asian markets.

The company’s leading clinical asset, MN-166 (ibudilast), is an anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective agent originally approved in Japan for asthma and post-stroke dizziness.