Invesco Ltd. Lowers Stock Holdings in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA)

Invesco Ltd. trimmed its position in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) by 69.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 94,763 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 215,593 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned approximately 0.08% of Avidity Biosciences worth $2,756,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 68.5% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 255,699 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $11,743,000 after purchasing an additional 103,905 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Avidity Biosciences in the third quarter valued at approximately $407,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 229.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 73,047 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,412,000 after purchasing an additional 50,908 shares in the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 30.1% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 539,207 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $24,766,000 after purchasing an additional 124,867 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in Avidity Biosciences in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,179,000.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of Avidity Biosciences stock opened at $31.20 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.83 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $29.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.41. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.51 and a 52-week high of $56.00.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.80) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.76) by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $2.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 2,772.45% and a negative return on equity of 27.66%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on RNA. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $63.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Chardan Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.69.

Insider Activity at Avidity Biosciences

In other Avidity Biosciences news, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 31,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.06, for a total transaction of $979,632.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 305,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,500,353.26. This trade represents a 9.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Steven George Hughes sold 9,578 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.06, for a total value of $297,492.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 72,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,262,721. This represents a 11.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 60,803 shares of company stock worth $1,876,027 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.68% of the company’s stock.

Avidity Biosciences 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.