Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNAC) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNAC) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 638,500 shares, an increase of 117.8% from the March 31st total of 293,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 48,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 13.3 days. Currently, 45.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy A. Springer bought 21,612 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $16.20 per share, for a total transaction of $350,114.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 1,017,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,479,093.60. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders bought 22,472 shares of company stock worth $365,981. Corporate insiders own 31.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cartesian Therapeutics

An institutional investor recently bought a new position in Cartesian Therapeutics stock. Hall Laurie J Trustee purchased a new position in shares of Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNAC) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 52,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,000. Hall Laurie J Trustee owned approximately 0.98% of Cartesian Therapeutics as of its most recent SEC filing. 86.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on RNAC. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on shares of Cartesian Therapeutics from $2.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cartesian Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on shares of Cartesian Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $42.00 price objective for the company. Finally, SVB Leerink initiated coverage on shares of Cartesian Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $39.00 price objective for the company.

Cartesian Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ RNAC traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $21.03. The company had a trading volume of 123,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 113,528. Cartesian Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $11.66 and a 1-year high of $42.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $19.20.

Cartesian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:RNAC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported ($2.40) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.30) by ($2.10). Cartesian Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 845.01% and a negative return on equity of 58.21%. The business had revenue of $8.27 million during the quarter. On average, research analysts expect that Cartesian Therapeutics will post -3.21 earnings per share for the current year.

About Cartesian Therapeutics

Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, engages in the provision of mRNA cell therapies for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. It develops Descartes-08, an autologous anti-BCMA RNA-engineered chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, currently under Phase 2b clinical development for generalized myasthenia gravis, as well as for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, and myeloma autoimmune basket trials for other autoimmune diseases.