Avidity Biosciences’ (RNA) “Outperform” Rating Reiterated at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) in a report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $67.00 target price on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on RNA. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Chardan Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Avidity Biosciences from $56.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $59.00 price target on the stock. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Avidity Biosciences has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.80.

Avidity Biosciences Price Performance

Shares of RNA stock opened at $30.13 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $34.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.09. Avidity Biosciences has a 1-year low of $10.12 and a 1-year high of $56.00. The company has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.46 and a beta of 0.99.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.65) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.79) by $0.14. The company had revenue of $2.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.09 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 27.66% and a negative net margin of 2,772.45%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Avidity Biosciences will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avidity Biosciences

In related news, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 10,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.59, for a total transaction of $297,250.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 337,411 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,646,580.49. This represents a 2.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael F. Maclean sold 11,151 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.66, for a total transaction of $364,191.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 82,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,708,885.72. This represents a 11.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 151,586 shares of company stock valued at $5,208,537. Insiders own 3.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avidity Biosciences

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of RNA. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 84.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,030,949 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $322,931,000 after purchasing an additional 3,228,923 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 41.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,706,106 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $216,151,000 after purchasing an additional 1,386,087 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 33.9% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,896,166 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $224,774,000 after buying an additional 1,239,323 shares in the last quarter. RA Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 16.7% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 2,263.7% in the second quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 739,039 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $30,190,000 after buying an additional 707,773 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.