Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $72.70 and last traded at $72.5850, with a volume of 181864 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $72.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RNA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC lowered Avidity Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, October 27th. Evercore ISI set a $72.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Citigroup cut shares of Avidity Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Loop Capital set a $72.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $72.00 price target (up previously from $61.00) on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Avidity Biosciences presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.57.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $10.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.40 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average is $71.80 and its 200 day moving average is $55.31.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.27) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.05) by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $12.48 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 2,634.59% and a negative return on equity of 37.70%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 420.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Avidity Biosciences

In other news, insider Charles Calderaro III sold 3,727 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.23, for a total value of $269,201.21. Following the transaction, the insider owned 49,797 shares in the company, valued at $3,596,837.31. This represents a 6.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Steven George Hughes sold 2,373 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.23, for a total transaction of $171,401.79. Following the sale, the insider owned 36,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,635,961.62. This represents a 6.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 23,362 shares of company stock worth $1,687,437. Company insiders own 3.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 16,316 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 746 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 157.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 45,923 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,001,000 after purchasing an additional 28,055 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Avidity Biosciences during the second quarter worth approximately $28,261,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its position in Avidity Biosciences by 19.5% during the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 19,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $540,000 after purchasing an additional 3,100 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 31.6% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 580,275 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $16,480,000 after purchasing an additional 139,473 shares during the last quarter.

About Avidity Biosciences

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.