Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $71.09 and last traded at $70.8310, with a volume of 2394961 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $70.84.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on RNA shares. Chardan Capital reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Loop Capital set a $72.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Finally, Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective (up previously from $59.00) on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, August 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.24.

Avidity Biosciences Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $10.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.95 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $53.81 and a 200 day moving average of $42.07.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Avidity Biosciences

In other Avidity Biosciences news, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.95, for a total transaction of $2,497,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 305,871 shares in the company, valued at $15,278,256.45. This represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Teresa Mccarthy sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.15, for a total value of $1,003,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 97,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,871,069.50. This represents a 17.08% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 144,438 shares of company stock worth $7,122,937 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.83% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avidity Biosciences

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of RNA. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 16.2% in the third quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 29,211 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,273,000 after buying an additional 4,069 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 169.5% during the third quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 22,347 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $951,000 after acquiring an additional 14,054 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the third quarter worth about $682,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 40.0% in the 3rd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 175,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $7,625,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, University of Wisconsin Foundation acquired a new stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $12,600,000.

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.