Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) Now Covered by Analysts at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) in a research note released on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating and a $55.00 price target on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $66.56.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ RNA opened at $29.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.79 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $30.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.90. Avidity Biosciences has a 52-week low of $21.51 and a 52-week high of $56.00.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.90) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.88) by ($0.02). Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 4,136.00% and a negative return on equity of 26.96%. The company had revenue of $1.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.63 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Avidity Biosciences will post -2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michael F. Maclean sold 7,935 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.06, for a total value of $246,461.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 96,720 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,004,123.20. The trade was a 7.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 31,540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $9,500,353.26. This represents a 9.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 86,678 shares of company stock worth $2,725,857. Company insiders own 3.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Avidity Biosciences

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 7.1% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 164,776 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,864,000 after purchasing an additional 10,973 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the 1st quarter valued at $180,000. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 61,675 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,821,000 after acquiring an additional 874 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 357,718 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $10,560,000 after acquiring an additional 25,329 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 784,704 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $23,164,000 after acquiring an additional 21,649 shares during the period.

About Avidity Biosciences

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.