5,914,720 Shares in Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. $ACHV Acquired by venBio Partners LLC

venBio Partners LLC bought a new position in Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHV) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,914,720 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,623,122,000. Achieve Life Sciences comprises about 7.4% of venBio Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. venBio Partners LLC owned 5.75% of Achieve Life Sciences at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ACHV. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Achieve Life Sciences in the second quarter valued at $34,426,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Achieve Life Sciences by 18,747.4% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,369,193 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $21,715,000 after purchasing an additional 4,346,011 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in Achieve Life Sciences in the second quarter valued at about $17,964,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Achieve Life Sciences by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,461,802 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,755,000 after acquiring an additional 311,925 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Achieve Life Sciences by 472.3% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,359,116 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,755,000 after buying an additional 1,121,614 shares during the period. 33.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard Alistair Stewart sold 20,626 shares of Achieve Life Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.49, for a total transaction of $175,114.74. Following the sale, the director directly owned 208,249 shares in the company, valued at $1,768,034.01. This trade represents a 9.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on ACHV. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $18.00 price target on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. UBS Group reiterated 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 note on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Achieve Life Sciences in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $15.00.

Achieve Life Sciences Stock Down 1.1%

ACHV stock opened at $8.18 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $841.72 million, a P/E ratio of -5.28 and a beta of 2.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $6.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.17. Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2.62 and a 12 month high of $8.61.

Achieve Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ACHV) last posted its earnings results 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). As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. will post -0.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Achieve Life Sciences Profile

Achieve Life Sciences, Inc (NASDAQ: ACHV) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to the development and commercialization of cytisinicline, a plant-derived alkaloid for smoking cessation. The company’s mission is to offer a novel, evidence-based therapy that addresses the global need for effective and well-tolerated smoking cessation options. Achieve focuses its efforts on advancing the clinical profile of cytisinicline through rigorous development programs and regulatory engagement.

Cytisinicline (formerly marketed as Tabex® in Europe) acts as a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor partial agonist, helping reduce withdrawal symptoms and nicotine cravings.