Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the twenty-one research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $69.00.

Several research firms have weighed in on RNA. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Avidity Biosciences to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Avidity Biosciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $52.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Monday. Loop Capital set a $72.00 price target on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday. Leerink Partnrs downgraded Avidity Biosciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC downgraded Avidity Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday.

Avidity Biosciences Price Performance

NASDAQ RNA opened at $69.93 on Wednesday. Avidity Biosciences has a fifty-two week low of $21.51 and a fifty-two week high of $70.51. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $46.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.70. The firm has a market cap of $10.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.64 and a beta of 0.97.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Eric Mosbrooker sold 6,562 shares of Avidity Biosciences stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.38, for a total transaction of $297,783.56. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 55,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,495,900. This trade represents a 10.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 50,000 shares of Avidity Biosciences stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.95, for a total value of $2,497,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 305,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,278,256.45. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 571,478 shares of company stock valued at $26,310,254 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avidity Biosciences

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Avidity Biosciences by 2.7% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,338,098 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $334,701,000 after buying an additional 295,275 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 19.5% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,684,556 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $285,888,000 after purchasing an additional 1,578,459 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 3.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,847,965 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $80,893,000 after purchasing an additional 92,719 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 16.8% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,839,315 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $52,237,000 after purchasing an additional 264,827 shares during the period. Finally, Driehaus Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 3.5% during the first quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 1,270,931 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $37,518,000 after purchasing an additional 42,873 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.