Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV) Stock Falls 6.5% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHV) dropped 6.5% on Thursday. The stock traded as low as $7.61 and last traded at $7.5660. Approximately 759,830 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 44% from the average daily volume of 1,357,409 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.09.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ACHV. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Achieve Life Sciences and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $12.00 target price on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Achieve Life Sciences has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $15.50.

Achieve Life Sciences Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $745.00 million, a PE ratio of -4.67 and a beta of 2.30. The company has a 50-day moving average of $7.49 and a 200 day moving average of $5.79.

Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.80) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.16) by ($0.64). Sell-side analysts predict that Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. will post -0.92 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Achieve Life Sciences

In other news, Director Richard Stewart sold 20,626 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.49, for a total value of $175,114.74. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 208,249 shares in the company, valued at $1,768,034.01. This represents a 9.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Achieve Life Sciences

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACHV. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Achieve Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at about $49,725,000. venBio Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Achieve Life Sciences during the second quarter valued at about $38,623,122. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Achieve Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,426,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in Achieve Life Sciences in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $17,964,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in Achieve Life Sciences in the second quarter valued at approximately $12,575,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.52% of the company’s stock.

Achieve Life Sciences Company Profile

Achieve Life Sciences, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing cytisinicline, a plant-based investigational therapy intended to help adults quit smoking and address nicotine addiction. Cytisinicline is designed to act on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the brain, potentially reducing nicotine cravings and withdrawal symptoms while helping limit the satisfaction associated with smoking.

The company’s primary development program is aimed at securing regulatory approval for cytisinicline in the United States.