XTX Topco Ltd Takes Position in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA)

XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 6,037 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $277,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Castleark Management LLC acquired a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the third quarter valued at $2,623,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Avidity Biosciences by 84.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,030,949 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $322,931,000 after purchasing an additional 3,228,923 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Avidity Biosciences by 41.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,706,106 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $216,151,000 after purchasing an additional 1,386,087 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp acquired a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the third quarter valued at $368,000.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider W. Michael Flanagan sold 24,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.77, for a total transaction of $858,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 85,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,054,364.53. This represents a 21.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur A. Levin sold 3,323 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.12, for a total transaction of $139,964.76. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 14,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $624,639.60. This represents a 18.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 174,866 shares of company stock worth $7,583,037 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on RNA. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $59.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI decreased 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 report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $63.60.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Down 1.9 %

RNA opened at $32.74 on Wednesday. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a twelve month low of $8.37 and a twelve month high of $56.00. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $43.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.27. The company has a market cap of $3.91 billion, a PE ratio of -11.37 and a beta of 0.89.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.65) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.79) by $0.14. Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 2,772.45% and a negative return on equity of 27.66%. The firm had revenue of $2.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.09 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect 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.