Short Interest in Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC) Drops By 5.7%

Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC) was the target of a large decrease in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,470,000 shares, a decrease of 5.7% from the August 15th total of 3,680,000 shares. Currently, 4.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 576,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.0 days.

Alector Trading Up 8.9 %

ALEC opened at $6.14 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $5.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.39. The stock has a market cap of $591.80 million, a PE ratio of -4.45 and a beta of 0.68. Alector has a 1 year low of $3.66 and a 1 year high of $8.90.

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $15.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.04 million. Alector had a negative net margin of 290.66% and a negative return on equity of 102.63%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.02 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Alector will post -1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Alector in a report on Tuesday. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Alector in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Arnon Rosenthal sold 26,499 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total value of $129,315.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,948,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,509,880.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Alector news, CEO Arnon Rosenthal sold 26,499 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total transaction of $129,315.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,948,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,509,880.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sara Kenkare-Mitra sold 13,926 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total transaction of $67,958.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 291,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,569.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 58,222 shares of company stock valued at $286,013. Insiders own 9.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Alector during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Alector during the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Alector in the 1st quarter valued at $59,000. Caxton Associates LP grew its position in Alector by 41.3% in the second quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 20,282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 5,933 shares during the period. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Alector by 89.1% in the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 18,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 8,670 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.83% of the company’s stock.

Alector Company Profile

Alector, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, develops therapies for the treatment of neurodegeneration diseases. Its products include AL001, an immune activity in the brain with genetic links to multiple neurodegenerative disorders, which is in Phase III clinical trial for the treatment of frontotemporal dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diseases; and AL101 that is in Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.