Stifel Financial Corp Invests $368,000 in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA)

Stifel Financial Corp purchased a new stake in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 8,012 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $368,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of RNA. RA Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. RA Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,300,408 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $289,378,000 after acquiring an additional 900,000 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 33.9% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,896,166 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $224,774,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239,323 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the third quarter valued at approximately $498,000. HighVista Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the third quarter valued at approximately $574,000. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC raised its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 10.8% in the third quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 17,320 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $796,000 after buying an additional 1,695 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on RNA shares. Chardan Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $59.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright began coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.36.

Insider Transactions at Avidity Biosciences

In other Avidity Biosciences news, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 31,855 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.66, for a total value of $1,040,384.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 265,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,664,959.28. This represents a 10.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Arthur A. Levin sold 5,000 shares of Avidity Biosciences stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.63, for a total value of $233,150.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $691,522.90. The trade was a 25.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 193,071 shares of company stock worth $7,474,724 over the last three months. 3.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Avidity Biosciences Trading Down 3.2 %

NASDAQ RNA opened at $30.11 on Friday. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.86 and a 12-month high of $56.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.38. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.45 and a beta of 0.89.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.65) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.79) by $0.14. Avidity Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 27.66% and a negative net margin of 2,772.45%. The company had revenue of $2.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.09 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Avidity Biosciences 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.