The shares bottomed at a record low yesterday
Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Athenex Inc (NASDAQ:ATNX) with an "outperform" rating and $20 price target -- a nearly 112% premium to last night's close at $9.44. The covering analyst waxed optimistic on positive data for the biopharmaceutical firm's specialty oncology products, as well as positive late-stage Oraxol breast cancer data.
Analysts are already upbeat on ATNX, with 100% of those in coverage maintaining a "buy" or better rating. Plus, the average 12-month price target sits all the way up at $25.58.
Short sellers, on the other hand, have been ramping up their bearish exposure to the stock. Short interest rose 3% in the most recent reporting period to 5.33 million shares. This represents 16% of Athenex's available float, or 16.3 times the average daily pace of trading.
Looking at the charts, these bears have certainly been in the driver's seat. Even with today's 5.9% pop to trade at $9.99, ATNX stock is still down 37.2% year-over-year. Plus, the shares hit a record low of $9.38 yesterday. As such, the equity's 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) closed Wednesday at 27, suggesting the oversold stock may have been due for a short-term bounce.