The short interest data have been released for the December 15 settlement date. Pharmaceutical companies are usually involved in a lengthy process in getting their drug candidates to market through clinical trials. There is a fair amount of risk involved, should a study come back negative or a candidate not be approved. Conversely, if a drug is approved or passes a clinical trial, there can be big upside.

The December short interest data have been compared with the previous figures, and for most of the selected pharmaceutical stocks short interest was up.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) saw its short interest jump to 85.66 million shares from the previous 65.52 million. Last February, short interest spiked incredibly, and since that time it has slowly backed off. The highest short interest reading on the year was 207.4 million. Shares of Pfizer closed Thursday at $32.62, within a 52-week trading range of $28.47 to $36.46.

Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) saw short interest increase to 25.61 million shares from 24.81 million in the previous period. Merck shares closed Thursday at $52.85, in a 52-week trading range of $45.69 to $63.62.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA) short interest more than doubled to 16.82 million shares. The previous level was 7.19 million. The current level is the highest in the past 52 weeks. Shares of Teva closed Thursday at $66.32, in a 52-week trading range of $54.17 to $72.31.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) saw its short interest increase slightly to 23.57 million shares from the previous reading of 23.30 million. Bristol-Myers shares closed Thursday at $68.97, within a 52-week range of $51.82 to $70.87.

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) short interest increased to 21.09 million shares from the previous level of 20.23 million. Short interest has backed way off its highest level year to date in May. Shares of AbbVie closed Thursday at $58.46, in a 52-week trading range of $45.45 to $71.60.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.