Short Interest in Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) Decreases By 6.1%

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 540,000 shares, a decrease of 6.1% from the June 30th total of 575,300 shares. Approximately 13.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 80,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.7 days.

Insider Transactions at Atara Biotherapeutics

In other news, EVP Anhco Nguyen sold 1,715 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.50, for a total transaction of $26,582.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $557,054.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Pascal Touchon sold 3,260 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.50, for a total value of $50,530.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 73,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,134,057.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Anhco Nguyen sold 1,715 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.50, for a total transaction of $26,582.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,939 shares in the company, valued at $557,054.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,120 shares of company stock valued at $94,860 in the last ninety days. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atara Biotherapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new position in Atara Biotherapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Atara Biotherapeutics by 8,916.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,958,150 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,442,000 after buying an additional 4,903,159 shares during the period. Redmile Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Redmile Group LLC now owns 9,263,309 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $6,429,000 after purchasing an additional 156,863 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 49.5% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,638,687 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,830,000 after purchasing an additional 873,133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 29.3% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 383,082 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 86,842 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on ATRA. HC Wainwright reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics from $12.50 to $11.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atara Biotherapeutics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $355.50.

Atara Biotherapeutics Trading Down 7.4 %

Atara Biotherapeutics stock opened at $9.63 on Wednesday. Atara Biotherapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $4.96 and a fifty-two week high of $63.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $11.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $15.51.

Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The biotechnology company reported ($5.75) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($9.25) by $3.50. The company had revenue of $27.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.00 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Atara Biotherapeutics will post -15.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Atara Biotherapeutics

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc develops therapies for patients with solid tumors, hematologic cancers, and autoimmune diseases in the United States. Its lead product includes Tab-cel (tabelecleucel), a T-cell immunotherapy program that is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of epstein-barr virus (EBV) driven post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease, as well as nasopharyngeal carcinoma.