Heron Therapeutics Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:HRTX)

Heron Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:HRTX) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors bought 5,176 call options on the company. This is an increase of 907% compared to the typical daily volume of 514 call options.

Heron Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ:HRTX opened at $1.16 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $176.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.44 and a beta of 1.81. Heron Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $1.04 and a 1-year high of $3.93. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $1.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $2.43.

Heron Therapeutics (NASDAQ:HRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $32.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.17) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Heron Therapeutics will post -0.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heron Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clearline Capital LP boosted its position in Heron Therapeutics by 48.9% during the third quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 2,226,512 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,431,000 after purchasing an additional 731,246 shares in the last quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Heron Therapeutics by 25.3% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC now owns 1,978,078 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,936,000 after buying an additional 399,577 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Heron Therapeutics by 256.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,761,051 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $6,164,000 after buying an additional 1,266,697 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Heron Therapeutics by 1,460.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 607,135 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,125,000 after acquiring an additional 568,238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Heron Therapeutics by 49.8% during the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 562,228 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,968,000 after acquiring an additional 186,802 shares in the last quarter. 80.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on HRTX. StockNews.com cut shares of Heron Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on Heron Therapeutics from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 13th.

About Heron Therapeutics

Heron Therapeutics, Inc, a commercial-stage biotechnology company, focuses on enhancing the lives of patients by developing and commercializing therapeutic that enhances medical care. The company's product candidates utilize its proprietary Biochronomer, a drug delivery technology, which delivers therapeutic levels of a range of short-acting pharmacological agents over a period from days to weeks with a single administration.