BioVie Inc. (NASDAQ:BIVI) Short Interest Up 56.7% in August

BioVie Inc. (NASDAQ:BIVI) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 1,254,452 shares, an increase of 56.7% from the July 30th total of 800,586 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 14,966,326 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.1 days. Currently, 15.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

BioVie Stock Down 9.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:BIVI opened at $2.03 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $1.73 and a 200 day moving average of $1.56. The company has a market capitalization of $17.15 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.64 and a beta of 0.74. BioVie has a 52 week low of $0.82 and a 52 week high of $3.79.

BioVie (NASDAQ:BIVI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.70) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.52) by ($0.18).

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Cuong V. Do purchased 15,210 shares of BioVie stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $2.08 per share, with a total value of $31,636.80. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 16,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,523.36. This represents a 1,676.96% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 23,280 shares of company stock valued at $49,118. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BioVie

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of BioVie during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BioVie by 283.7% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 54,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 40,000 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of BioVie in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $57,000. Two Sigma Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of BioVie in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in shares of BioVie during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 4.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on BIVI shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded BioVie to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of BioVie in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat, BioVie has a consensus rating of “Sell”.

About BioVie

BioVie Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for chronic liver diseases and associated neurological complications. The company’s research and development efforts center on candidates designed to address serious unmet medical needs in hepatic encephalopathy and other liver‐related disorders. BioVie advances its pipeline through controlled clinical trials and regulatory interactions in North America.

The company’s lead product candidate, BIV201, is undergoing Phase 2 clinical evaluation for the treatment of hepatic encephalopathy, a life‐threatening condition marked by elevated neurotoxins in patients with advanced liver disease.