Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB) Stock Rating Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group

Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB) was upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $35.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $2.00. Jefferies Financial Group’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 80.13% from the stock’s previous close.

Separately, HC Wainwright restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a report on Thursday, June 20th.

Assembly Biosciences Stock Performance

ASMB stock opened at $19.43 on Friday. Assembly Biosciences has a 52-week low of $7.69 and a 52-week high of $20.04. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.47.

Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.98) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.96) by $0.98. The business had revenue of $8.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.96 million. Equities research analysts predict that Assembly Biosciences will post -7.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Assembly Biosciences

In other news, major shareholder Alexander Schornstein acquired 4,438 shares of Assembly Biosciences stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $12.52 per share, with a total value of $55,563.76. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 693,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,677,774.76. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 5.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assembly Biosciences

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASMB. Armistice Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Assembly Biosciences during the 2nd quarter worth $6,421,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Assembly Biosciences by 39.2% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 54,911 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $753,000 after purchasing an additional 15,451 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Assembly Biosciences by 131.0% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 13,558 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $184,000 after buying an additional 7,690 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.92% of the company’s stock.

About Assembly Biosciences

Assembly Biosciences, Inc, a biotechnology company, develops therapeutic candidates for the treatment of viral diseases. It develops ABI-5366, a long-acting herpes simplex virus (HSV) helicase-primase inhibitor that is in Phase 1a/1b clinical trial to treat recurrent genital herpes; ABI-1179, which is in Phase 1a/1b clinical trial for the treatment of recurrent genital herpes; and ABI-6250, a small molecule orally bioavailable hepatitis delta virus entry inhibitor that is in Phase 1a clinical trial.