Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.04 EPS

Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.28) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24) by ($0.04), Zacks reports.

Achieve Life Sciences Stock Down 3.2%

Shares of Achieve Life Sciences stock opened at $4.59 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 6.64 and a quick ratio of 6.64. Achieve Life Sciences has a 1-year low of $1.84 and a 1-year high of $5.78. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $3.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.12. The company has a market capitalization of $234.57 million, a P/E ratio of -3.14 and a beta of 1.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ACHV has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. HC Wainwright assumed coverage on Achieve Life Sciences in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $12.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $12.00.

Insider Activity at Achieve Life Sciences

In related news, CEO Richard Alistair Stewart sold 129,501 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.92, for a total value of $378,142.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 228,875 shares in the company, valued at $668,315. This represents a 36.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jaime Xinos sold 20,854 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.77, for a total transaction of $57,765.58. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 74,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $206,176.64. The trade was a 21.89% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 381,972 shares of company stock valued at $1,084,997. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ACHV. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Achieve Life Sciences during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Achieve Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at $232,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Achieve Life Sciences by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 295,058 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $667,000 after buying an additional 107,218 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Achieve Life Sciences in the second quarter valued at $159,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Achieve Life Sciences by 39.9% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 33,731 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 9,617 shares during the period. 33.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Achieve Life Sciences

Achieve Life Sciences, Inc, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, develops and commercializes cytisinicline for smoking cessation and nicotine addiction. The company offers cytisinicline, a plant-based alkaloid that interacts with nicotine receptors in the brain that reduce the severity of nicotine withdrawal symptoms.