Atyr PHARMA INC (NASDAQ:ATYR) Short Interest Up 8.5% in January

Atyr PHARMA INC (NASDAQ:ATYR) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,820,000 shares, an increase of 8.5% from the January 15th total of 3,520,000 shares. Currently, 4.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 820,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.7 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Atyr PHARMA in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Atyr PHARMA in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Atyr PHARMA currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.25.

Atyr PHARMA Stock Performance

Shares of Atyr PHARMA stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $3.41. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,056,479 shares, compared to its average volume of 722,426. The company has a quick ratio of 5.41, a current ratio of 5.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Atyr PHARMA has a one year low of $1.42 and a one year high of $4.22. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $3.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2.82.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atyr PHARMA

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Alterna Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Atyr PHARMA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Atyr PHARMA in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Atyr PHARMA in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Atyr PHARMA during the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Boothbay Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in Atyr PHARMA during the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.72% of the company’s stock.

About Atyr PHARMA

aTyr Pharma, Inc engages in the discovery and development of medicines based on novel biological pathways. Its product pipeline includes ATYR1923, ATYR2810, NRP2 mAbs, and AARS-1, DARS-1. The company was founded by Paul Schimmel, Xiang-Lei Yang and Bruce Beutler on September 8, 2005 and is headquartered in San Diego, CA.