bluebird bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLUE – Get Rating) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,290,000 shares, a drop of 6.3% from the January 15th total of 18,450,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,690,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.7 days.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
BLUE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of bluebird bio to $8.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 8th. SVB Leerink decreased their price objective on bluebird bio from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on bluebird bio from $3.00 to $4.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $6.75.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other bluebird bio news, Director Nick Leschly sold 4,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.80, for a total transaction of $33,462.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 280,149 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,185,162.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 8,025 shares of company stock worth $62,595 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of bluebird bio
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Point72 Middle East FZE acquired a new stake in bluebird bio in the 4th quarter worth about $305,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its stake in shares of bluebird bio by 6,082.7% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 68,504 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $474,000 after acquiring an additional 67,396 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of bluebird bio by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 43,619 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $302,000 after buying an additional 5,607 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in bluebird bio by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 19,623 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $136,000 after acquiring an additional 9,023 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wisconsin Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of bluebird bio in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $535,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.01% of the company’s stock.
bluebird bio Price Performance
NASDAQ BLUE traded down $0.02 on Friday, hitting $5.62. The company had a trading volume of 670,934 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,722,219. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $6.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.67. The company has a market capitalization of $466.01 million, a PE ratio of -0.92 and a beta of 0.92. bluebird bio has a 12-month low of $2.87 and a 12-month high of $8.58.
bluebird bio Company Profile
bluebird bio, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company, which engages in the development of potential gene therapies for severe genetic diseases and cancer. Its integrated product platform includes gene therapy, cancer immunotherapy and gene editing. Its product pipeline includes Lenti-D, LentiGlobin, BCL11a shRNA, bb2121, and bb21217.