The company withdrew its Renuvion marketing application
The shares of Apyx Medical Corp (NASDAQ:APYX) are down 36.6% at $4.40, slicing through a long-term level of support. The medical supplies maker said it has withdrawn a marketing application for Renuvion, a device used for skin resurfacing. The move comes after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) questioned data irregularities.
After topping out at a nine-year high of $8.89 on Jan. 28, APYX pulled back sharply to test support at the $6 level and 200-day moving average -- a trendline that has ushered the shares higher for the last year, and caught a March sell-off. However, today's drop has the equity breaching both of these levels, and headed for its worst day since Dec. 5, 2002, when it lost 40%, and its lowest close since last June.
Analysts have yet to chime in, but there's plenty of room for downward revisions. While all three covering brokerage firms maintain a "buy" or better rating, the average 12-month price target of $10 is more than double APYX's current price.
And while short sellers are sidelined today with the stock on the short-sale restricted list, a recent batch of bearish bettors is likely cheering. Short interest on APYX stock is up 163% since late November, but the 196,159 shares currently sold short account for a slim 0.6% of Apyx Medical's available float.