Short Interest in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:AUPH) Drops By 6.3%

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,880,000 shares, a decline of 6.3% from the October 31st total of 7,340,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,240,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.5 days.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of AUPH traded up $0.32 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $9.18. The company had a trading volume of 1,541,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,598,049. The company has a current ratio of 5.60, a quick ratio of 5.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $4.71 and a 12-month high of $9.74. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.49. The company has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -59.06 and a beta of 1.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, September 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $10.00 target price on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $10.00.

Insider Transactions at Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Jeffrey Allen Bailey sold 4,557 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.43, for a total transaction of $38,415.51. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 13,356 shares in the company, valued at $112,591.08. The trade was a 25.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 126.6% during the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 9,684 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 5,410 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at about $78,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $84,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 247.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 11,483 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 8,180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 44.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,673 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 3,919 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.83% of the company’s stock.

About Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies to treat various diseases with unmet medical need in the United States. It offers LUPKYNIS for the treatment of adult patients with active lupus nephritis. It has a collaboration and license agreement with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd.