Short Interest in Portage Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ:ALP) Decreases By 33.3%

Portage Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ:ALP) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,354,529 shares, a drop of 33.3% from the August 15th total of 3,529,718 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,144,903 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.7 days. Approximately 10.0% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Fiorenzo Villani purchased 10,382 shares of Portage Biotech stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $4.07 per share, with a total value of $42,254.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 34,601 shares in the company, valued at $140,826.07. This trade represents a 42.87% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brittany Kaiser bought 9,350 shares of Portage Biotech stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $5.35 per share, for a total transaction of $50,022.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 16,766 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $89,698.10. This represents a 126.08% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 41,897 shares of company stock worth $191,245.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ALP shares. Zacks Research upgraded Portage Biotech to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Portage Biotech to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Portage Biotech in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, HC Wainwright started coverage on shares of Portage Biotech in a research report on Monday, August 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $12.50 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $12.50.

Portage Biotech Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of Portage Biotech stock opened at $4.65 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $9.54 and its 200 day moving average is $14.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.21 million, a PE ratio of -0.01 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Portage Biotech has a 1 year low of $3.20 and a 1 year high of $690.00.

Portage Biotech (NASDAQ:ALP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 16th. The company reported $23.75 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $0.05 million for the quarter. Equities research analysts forecast that Portage Biotech will post -14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Portage Biotech Company Profile

Portage Biotech Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing immuno-oncology treatments designed to stimulate the immune system to target and eliminate cancer cells. Its research has centered on therapies involving invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells, a specialized immune-cell population that may help generate targeted antitumor responses.

The company’s pipeline has included investigational therapies intended for use in solid tumors, including approaches that combine immune-cell activation with mechanisms designed to improve the tumor microenvironment and enhance treatment response.