bluebird bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLUE) Short Interest Update

bluebird bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLUE) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 49,570,000 shares, a growth of 13.6% from the November 15th total of 43,640,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 7,620,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.5 days.

bluebird bio Stock Performance

BLUE traded down $1.26 during trading on Friday, hitting $6.34. The stock had a trading volume of 720,970 shares, compared to its average volume of 388,291. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. bluebird bio has a 12 month low of $5.80 and a 12 month high of $71.60. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.96. The firm has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a PE ratio of -3.39 and a beta of 0.72.

bluebird bio (NASDAQ:BLUE) last released its earnings results on Friday, September 13th. The biotechnology company reported ($7.20) EPS for the quarter. bluebird bio had a negative net margin of 565.74% and a negative return on equity of 322.46%. The company had revenue of $18.57 million for the quarter. Analysts expect that bluebird bio will post -1.35 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BLUE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of bluebird bio in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America lowered shares of bluebird bio from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of bluebird bio from $80.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of bluebird bio from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of bluebird bio in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.14.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in bluebird bio by 113.7% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 54,714 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 29,113 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of bluebird bio by 315.3% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,334,519 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,223,000 after buying an additional 1,013,144 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of bluebird bio by 19.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 685,757 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $675,000 after buying an additional 111,574 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in bluebird bio by 25.4% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 292,436 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 59,219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in bluebird bio by 152.4% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 122,855 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 74,185 shares during the period. 87.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

bluebird bio Company Profile

bluebird bio, Inc, a biotechnology company, researches, develops, and commercializes gene therapies for severe genetic diseases. Its product candidates for severe genetic diseases include ZYNTEGLO (betibeglogene autotemcel) for the treatment of transfusion-dependent ß-thalassemia; lovotibeglogene autotemcel for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD); and SKYSONA (elivaldogene autotemcel) to treat cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy.