Aardvark Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AARD) Short Interest Down 42.1% in June

Aardvark Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AARD) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 528,265 shares, a decline of 42.1% from the June 15th total of 911,832 shares. Currently, 2.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 312,175 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.7 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aardvark Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AARD. SymBiosis Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Aardvark Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth about $6,255,000. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aardvark Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,248,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Aardvark Therapeutics by 53.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 297,865 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,910,000 after acquiring an additional 103,830 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Aardvark Therapeutics by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 555,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,386,000 after acquiring an additional 94,744 shares during the period. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Aardvark Therapeutics by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 1,359,883 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,073,000 after acquiring an additional 76,151 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AARD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. B. Riley Financial cut their target price on Aardvark Therapeutics from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings raised Aardvark Therapeutics from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $3.00 price target (down from $7.00) on shares of Aardvark Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, BTIG Research downgraded shares of Aardvark Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Aardvark Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.70.

Aardvark Therapeutics Trading Down 7.4%

NASDAQ AARD traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $5.86. 218,429 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 489,988. Aardvark Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $3.35 and a 52 week high of $17.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $128.22 million, a P/E ratio of -1.83 and a beta of 3.93. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $4.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.57.

Aardvark Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AARD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.99) earnings per share for the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Aardvark Therapeutics will post -3.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Aardvark Therapeutics

Aardvark Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specializing in the discovery and development of small-molecule modulators of the retinoic acid receptor–related orphan receptor gamma (RORγ). RORγ plays a central role in T-helper 17 (Th17) cell differentiation and inflammatory processes. By targeting this transcription factor, Aardvark aims to address a range of autoimmune and immune-mediated diseases.

The company’s lead programs consist of selective RORγ inverse agonists designed to suppress pathogenic Th17-driven responses in conditions such as psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease and other chronic inflammatory disorders.