Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) Short Interest Up 80.7% in December

Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) saw a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 85,300 shares, a growth of 80.7% from the December 15th total of 47,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 71,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.2 days. Currently, 1.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Kezar Life Sciences Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KZR opened at $6.34 on Friday. Kezar Life Sciences has a 12 month low of $5.20 and a 12 month high of $11.35. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $6.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.72. The company has a quick ratio of 7.65, a current ratio of 7.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market cap of $46.28 million, a P/E ratio of -0.48 and a beta of 0.21.

Kezar Life Sciences (NASDAQ:KZR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($2.78) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($3.03) by $0.25. As a group, research analysts forecast that Kezar Life Sciences will post -4.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KZR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Kezar Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Kezar Life Sciences from $11.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Kezar Life Sciences in a report on Monday, December 2nd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KZR. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Kezar Life Sciences by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,855,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,112,000 after purchasing an additional 64,356 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Kezar Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $63,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in Kezar Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Stonepine Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Kezar Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $630,000. Finally, Ikarian Capital LLC lifted its position in Kezar Life Sciences by 23.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ikarian Capital LLC now owns 1,068,992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $827,000 after purchasing an additional 200,000 shares during the period. 67.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kezar Life Sciences

Kezar Life Sciences, Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, engages in the discovery and development of novel small molecule therapeutics to treat unmet needs in immune-mediated diseases and cancer in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is zetomipzomib (KZR-616), a selective immunoproteasome inhibitor that is in Phase 2b clinical trials for various indications, including lupus nephritis, dermatomyositis, and polymyositis; Phase 1b clinical trials in systemic lupus erythematosus; and completed Phase 2a clinical trials in lupus nephritis.