Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group

Equities research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) in a research report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $59.00 price target on the biotechnology company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s target price points to a potential upside of 28.40% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on RNA. Chardan Capital lifted their target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $45.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $60.75.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of RNA opened at $45.95 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $43.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.69. Avidity Biosciences has a 52 week low of $4.82 and a 52 week high of $48.80. The company has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a PE ratio of -15.58 and a beta of 0.89.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 9th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.65) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.76) by $0.11. Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 2,381.82% and a negative return on equity of 32.89%. The firm had revenue of $2.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.09 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Avidity Biosciences will post -3.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Avidity Biosciences

In other news, Director Arthur A. Levin sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.01, for a total value of $225,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 14,830 shares in the company, valued at $667,498.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Arthur A. Levin sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.01, for a total transaction of $225,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $667,498.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 32,880 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total transaction of $1,446,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 234,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,325,172. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 128,543 shares of company stock worth $5,543,382. 3.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avidity Biosciences

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RNA. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Avidity Biosciences by 132.1% during the first quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,825,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $148,654,000 after acquiring an additional 3,315,000 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Avidity Biosciences by 4,661.3% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,242,833 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $31,704,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216,730 shares during the period. RA Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Avidity Biosciences by 33.7% during the first quarter. RA Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,282,180 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $83,761,000 after acquiring an additional 827,647 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. increased its position in Avidity Biosciences by 2,263.7% during the second quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 739,039 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $30,190,000 after acquiring an additional 707,773 shares during the period. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the first quarter worth $15,467,000.

Avidity Biosciences Company Profile

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.