Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) Now Covered by Analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $59.00 target price on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on RNA. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an overweight rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Monday, September 16th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a buy rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an overweight rating and a $63.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Chardan Capital boosted their price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $45.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avidity Biosciences currently has an average rating of Buy and an average price target of $60.75.

Avidity Biosciences Trading Up 1.1 %

RNA opened at $44.00 on Tuesday. Avidity Biosciences has a 12 month low of $4.82 and a 12 month high of $48.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $43.71 and a 200 day moving average of $34.61. The company has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a PE ratio of -14.92 and a beta of 0.89.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Avidity Biosciences

In other news, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 28,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.93, for a total value of $1,118,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 205,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,187,366.99. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Arthur A. Levin sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.73, for a total transaction of $228,650.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $678,175.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 28,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.93, for a total value of $1,118,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 205,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,187,366.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 128,543 shares of company stock worth $5,543,382 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avidity Biosciences

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RNA. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 132.1% in the first quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,825,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $148,654,000 after purchasing an additional 3,315,000 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Avidity Biosciences by 4,661.3% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,242,833 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $31,704,000 after buying an additional 1,216,730 shares during the period. RA Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 33.7% in the 1st 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 last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 707,773 shares during the period. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Avidity Biosciences during the first quarter valued at about $15,467,000.

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.