Short Interest in Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) Increases By 5.6%

Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,570,000 shares, a growth of 5.6% from the March 15th total of 3,380,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 717,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.0 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Kezar Life Sciences in a report on Friday, March 15th.

Kezar Life Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of KZR stock opened at $0.78 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 11.66, a current ratio of 11.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Kezar Life Sciences has a 52 week low of $0.67 and a 52 week high of $3.13. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $0.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $0.89.

Kezar Life Sciences (NASDAQ:KZR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The company reported ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.39) by $0.04. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kezar Life Sciences will post -1.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kezar Life Sciences

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Kezar Life Sciences by 264.2% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 63,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,060,000 after buying an additional 46,275 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Kezar Life Sciences by 55.7% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 20,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 7,203 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in Kezar Life Sciences by 15.0% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 46,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $773,000 after buying an additional 6,051 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in Kezar Life Sciences by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,897,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,150,000 after buying an additional 210,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Kezar Life Sciences by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 277,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,619,000 after buying an additional 2,130 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.90% of the company’s stock.

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.