Allianz Asset Management GmbH Invests $632,000 in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. $RNA

Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 14,500 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $632,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,847,965 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $80,893,000 after purchasing an additional 92,719 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 16.8% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,839,315 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $52,237,000 after acquiring an additional 264,827 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Avidity Biosciences in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,261,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 784,704 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $23,164,000 after purchasing an additional 21,649 shares during the period. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp boosted its position in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 1.2% during the second quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 781,908 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $22,206,000 after acquiring an additional 9,608 shares during the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 14,387 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.45, for a total value of $1,042,338.15. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 269,007 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,557.15. This represents a 5.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Steven George Hughes sold 4,895 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.45, for a total value of $354,642.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 31,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,289,347.55. This trade represents a 13.41% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 58,407 shares of company stock worth $4,226,448. Company insiders own 3.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore set a $72.00 price target on Avidity Biosciences in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Roth Mkm downgraded shares of Avidity Biosciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $72.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, October 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $72.00 price objective (up previously from $61.00) on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avidity Biosciences from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered Avidity Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.57.

Avidity Biosciences Price Performance

NASDAQ RNA opened at $72.87 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $72.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.04. The company has a market cap of $11.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.43 and a beta of 0.93. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.51 and a 1 year high of $73.06.

Avidity Biosciences Company Profile

Avidity Biosciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing antibody-oligonucleotide conjugate (AOC) therapies designed to address serious neuromuscular and cardiac diseases. The company’s proprietary AOC platform combines the targeting specificity of monoclonal antibodies with the gene-modulating power of oligonucleotides to deliver therapeutic agents directly into muscle cells. Headquartered in La Jolla, California, Avidity seeks to overcome traditional delivery challenges associated with RNA-based medicines by leveraging receptor-mediated uptake mechanisms.

The company’s lead product candidate, AOC 1001, is in clinical development for myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) and represents the first application of the AOC platform in a human study.