Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $32.61, but opened at $34.40. Avidity Biosciences shares last traded at $34.14, with a volume of 266,100 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on RNA shares. Barclays lowered their price target on Avidity Biosciences from $63.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Citigroup started coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Bank of America decreased their target price on Avidity Biosciences from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $66.69.

Avidity Biosciences Price Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $30.99 and a 200 day moving average of $37.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.80 and a beta of 1.02.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.80) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.76) by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $2.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 27.66% and a negative net margin of 2,772.45%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Avidity Biosciences

In related news, insider W. Michael Flanagan sold 12,742 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.66, for a total value of $416,153.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 72,647 shares in the company, valued at $2,372,651.02. This trade represents a 14.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Teresa Mccarthy sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.26, for a total value of $831,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 94,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,127,038.68. This represents a 21.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 105,138 shares of company stock worth $3,370,532. Insiders own 3.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avidity Biosciences

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RNA. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the fourth quarter worth about $386,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 30.1% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 539,207 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $24,766,000 after buying an additional 124,867 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 24.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 990,182 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $45,479,000 after buying an additional 197,065 shares during the last quarter. RA Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 16.7% during the third quarter. RA Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,300,408 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $289,378,000 after buying an additional 900,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 4.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,848,776 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $773,864,000 after buying an additional 689,729 shares during the last quarter.

Avidity Biosciences Company Profile

Avidity Biosciences, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the delivery of RNA therapeutics. It develops antibody oligonucleotide conjugates (AOC) that are designed to treat diseases previously untreatable with RNA therapeutics. The company's lead product candidate AOC 1001 for the treatment of myotonic dystrophy type 1, a rare monogenic muscle disease that is in phase 1/2 clinical trial.