Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics from $8.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics from $7.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $12.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aclaris Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $11.29.

Aclaris Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of ACRS opened at $4.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $631.26 million, a PE ratio of -8.07 and a beta of 0.76. Aclaris Therapeutics has a one year low of $1.18 and a one year high of $5.15. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $4.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.37.

Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.32 million. Aclaris Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 832.58% and a negative return on equity of 55.89%. Analysts anticipate that Aclaris Therapeutics will post -0.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Braden Michael Leonard sold 300,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.53, for a total transaction of $1,359,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 13,950,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,193,500. The trade was a 2.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aclaris Therapeutics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in Aclaris Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in Aclaris Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Aclaris Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in Aclaris Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Aclaris Therapeutics by 59.0% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 26,667 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 9,894 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.34% of the company’s stock.

About Aclaris Therapeutics

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc (NASDAQ:ACRS) is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel small‐molecule therapies for dermatologic diseases and related rare disorders. The company’s pipeline includes several product candidates designed to address chronic inflammatory skin conditions and non‐melanoma skin lesions. Lead programs include ATI‐50002, a topical agent in late‐stage development for molluscum contagiosum removal; ATI‐50003 for common wart resolution; ATI‐1501, an oral JAK1/2 inhibitor targeting pruritic disorders; and ATI‐450, an oral MK2 inhibitor for inflammatory indications.

Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania, Aclaris leverages proprietary chemistry platforms and translational research capabilities to advance multiple clinical and preclinical candidates.