Zacks Research Downgrades WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) to Hold

WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

WVE has been the topic of several other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on WAVE Life Sciences from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Truist Financial began coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. They set a “buy” rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on WAVE Life Sciences from $52.00 to $43.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded WAVE Life Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on WAVE Life Sciences from $24.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, WAVE Life Sciences presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.53.

WAVE Life Sciences Stock Down 3.0%

Shares of WVE stock opened at $5.25 on Wednesday. WAVE Life Sciences has a 52-week low of $5.01 and a 52-week high of $21.73. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $5.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of -4.82 and a beta of -1.26.

WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported ($0.34) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.30) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $2.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.45 million. WAVE Life Sciences had a negative net margin of 309.73% and a negative return on equity of 50.36%. Analysts expect that WAVE Life Sciences will post -1.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WAVE Life Sciences news, Director Heidi L. Wagner sold 7,000 shares of WAVE Life Sciences stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.01, for a total value of $42,070.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 44,930 shares in the company, valued at $270,029.30. This trade represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Adrian Rawcliffe sold 12,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.29, for a total transaction of $67,183.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 23,564 shares of company stock valued at $132,476. 24.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 9.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 57,349 shares of the company’s stock valued at $463,000 after acquiring an additional 4,957 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WAVE Life Sciences by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 557,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,506,000 after purchasing an additional 20,624 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of WAVE Life Sciences by 22.5% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 162,599 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,057,000 after purchasing an additional 29,899 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of WAVE Life Sciences in the 2nd quarter valued at about $80,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of WAVE Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth about $650,000. 89.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WAVE Life Sciences Company Profile

WAVE Life Sciences is a clinical-stage genetic medicines company focused on the discovery and development of stereopure oligonucleotide therapies designed to address serious diseases with high unmet medical need. Leveraging proprietary chemistry and precision synthesis, WAVE engineers drug candidates with defined stereochemistry to optimize potency, safety and manufacturability. This approach aims to enhance target specificity and improve therapeutic profiles compared with traditional oligonucleotide medicines.

The company’s pipeline includes programs in neuromuscular disorders such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy and neurodegenerative conditions including Huntington’s disease, as well as early-stage cardiovascular and liver indications.