Short Interest in Galapagos NV (NASDAQ:GLPG) Decreases By 18.3%

Galapagos NV (NASDAQ:GLPG) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 758,655 shares, a decline of 18.3% from the January 15th total of 928,021 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 111,366 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.8 days. Based on an average trading volume of 111,366 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.8 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on GLPG shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Galapagos from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Galapagos in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Galapagos from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Galapagos from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Galapagos in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.00.

Galapagos Price Performance

NASDAQ GLPG traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $33.93. The company had a trading volume of 151,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 90,925. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $33.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.70. Galapagos has a twelve month low of $22.59 and a twelve month high of $37.78.

Institutional Trading of Galapagos

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GLPG. Kotler Kevin bought a new position in Galapagos in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,943,000. Arax Advisory Partners boosted its stake in Galapagos by 319.2% in the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 2,335 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 1,778 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Galapagos by 61.6% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,968 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Galapagos by 68.6% during the fourth quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 53,791 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 21,886 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Galapagos in the fourth quarter worth about $2,943,000. Institutional investors own 32.46% of the company’s stock.

Galapagos Company Profile

Galapagos NV (NASDAQ:GLPG) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company headquartered in Mechelen, Belgium, focused on the discovery and development of novel small-molecule therapies. Established in 1999 through the merger of Tibotec and Progenix, Galapagos has built a research platform targeting chronic inflammatory diseases, fibrosis and oncology. The company’s discovery engine integrates human genetics, translational biology and medicinal chemistry to identify and optimize drug candidates with unique modes of action.

The company’s pipeline encompasses multiple programs across various stages of development.