Veru Inc. (NASDAQ:VERU) Short Interest Up 105.7% in July

Veru Inc. (NASDAQ:VERU) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,405,459 shares, a growth of 105.7% from the June 30th total of 683,403 shares. Approximately 10.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 344,909 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days.

Veru Price Performance

Veru stock opened at $2.21 on Thursday. Veru has a 1 year low of $2.05 and a 1 year high of $7.33. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $2.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $2.51. The stock has a market cap of $35.47 million, a P/E ratio of -2.48 and a beta of -1.19.

Veru (NASDAQ:VERU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.28) by $0.15. As a group, equities analysts expect that Veru will post -1.07 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on VERU shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Veru to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings cut Veru from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Veru from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Veru in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Veru has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Veru by 69.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 5,008 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in Veru during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Veru during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Veru during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in Veru by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 48,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.16% of the company’s stock.

Veru Company Profile

Veru Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Miami, Florida. The company is dedicated to the development and commercialization of novel therapies in the fields of oncology and infectious disease. Veru’s research strategy centers on advancing small-molecule and biologic candidates through clinical trials, leveraging its in-house manufacturing and formulation capabilities as well as strategic partnerships to support late-stage development.

The company’s lead product candidate is sabizabulin (VERU-111), an oral, microtubule-disrupting agent undergoing pivotal trials for indications that include metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer and hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19.