Short Interest in Oculis Holding AG (NASDAQ:OCS) Increases By 69.3%

Oculis Holding AG (NASDAQ:OCS) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,102,658 shares, an increase of 69.3% from the May 31st total of 651,247 shares. Currently, 1.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,672,824 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.7 days.

Institutional Trading of Oculis

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gildi lifeyrissjodur acquired a new position in shares of Oculis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,250,000. Aberdeen Group plc increased its position in shares of Oculis by 39.4% during the fourth quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,746,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,887,000 after buying an additional 493,827 shares during the period. SR One Capital Management LP raised its stake in Oculis by 98.8% during the fourth quarter. SR One Capital Management LP now owns 641,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,801,000 after buying an additional 318,522 shares during the last quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC bought a new position in Oculis during the fourth quarter worth $9,862,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in Oculis by 152.3% in the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 331,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,617,000 after buying an additional 200,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 22.30% of the company’s stock.

Oculis Trading Up 4.6%

NASDAQ OCS traded up $0.62 on Thursday, reaching $14.15. The company had a trading volume of 313,505 shares, compared to its average volume of 514,675. The firm has a market cap of $820.36 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.62 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 5.18 and a quick ratio of 5.18. Oculis has a fifty-two week low of $10.52 and a fifty-two week high of $34.47. The business has a 50 day moving average of $21.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.97.

Oculis (NASDAQ:OCS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.63) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by ($0.14). Oculis had a negative return on equity of 56.78% and a negative net margin of 8,460.67%.The company had revenue of $0.26 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $0.25 million. Analysts forecast that Oculis will post -2.27 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Oculis from $50.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Oculis in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Oculis from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Oculis from $42.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Oculis in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Oculis has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.33.

Oculis Company Profile

Oculis SA (NASDAQ: OCS) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel ophthalmic therapies designed primarily to treat retinal and neuro-ophthalmic diseases. Leveraging its proprietary technology platforms, Oculis aims to deliver therapeutic agents to the back of the eye through topical or nasal administration, potentially offering an alternative to current intravitreal injections. The company’s pipeline includes OCS-01, a topical dexamethasone formulation targeting diabetic macular edema; OCS-05, a neuroprotective candidate for acute optic neuritis and idiopathic intracranial hypertension; and OC-02, a nasal spray formulation of varenicline for dry eye disease.

Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Oculis operates research and development facilities across Europe and in the United States, with a presence in Cambridge, Massachusetts.