Short Interest in Passage Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:PASG) Rises By 718.3%

Passage Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:PASG) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 91,808 shares, a growth of 718.3% from the January 29th total of 11,220 shares. Currently, 3.0% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 49,731 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 49,731 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Currently, 3.0% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Passage Bio Stock Down 0.8%

PASG traded down $0.07 during trading on Thursday, reaching $9.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 13,131 shares, compared to its average volume of 65,447. The company has a market cap of $29.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.64 and a beta of 1.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $11.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.22. Passage Bio has a 1 year low of $5.12 and a 1 year high of $20.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO William Chou sold 4,076 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.44, for a total value of $75,161.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 6,524 shares in the company, valued at $120,302.56. This represents a 38.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 5.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Passage Bio

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nano Cap New Millennium Growth Fund L P acquired a new stake in shares of Passage Bio in the 4th quarter worth $118,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Passage Bio in the fourth quarter valued at about $148,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Passage Bio in the third quarter valued at about $188,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Passage Bio by 15.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 31,397 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,000 after purchasing an additional 4,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Yiheng Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in Passage Bio during the fourth quarter worth about $405,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Chardan Capital initiated coverage on Passage Bio in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $21.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Passage Bio in a report on Monday, December 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.67.

Passage Bio Company Profile

Passage Bio is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development of gene therapies to treat rare, monogenic central nervous system and neuromuscular disorders. The company applies its in-house gene therapy platform to design and engineer adeno-associated virus (AAV)–based vectors that restore or replace defective genes, aiming to deliver durable treatments with a single administration.

The company’s lead programs include PBGM01, an AAV9-based therapy for GM2 gangliosidoses (Tay–Sachs and Sandhoff diseases), which is conducting a first-in-human study to assess safety and potential therapeutic benefit.