Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) Shares Down 3.4% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN) traded down 3.4% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $18.77 and last traded at $19.01. 81,134 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 1,168,239 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.67.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRDN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BTIG Research increased their price target on Viridian Therapeutics from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $27.00 price objective (down previously from $37.00) on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Viridian Therapeutics from $25.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $34.00 price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viridian Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.70.

Viridian Therapeutics Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.48 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.30. The company has a current ratio of 18.55, a quick ratio of 18.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($1.15) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.11) by ($0.04). Viridian Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 70.12% and a negative net margin of 85,127.16%. The company had revenue of $0.09 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.08 million. On average, analysts expect that Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Viridian Therapeutics news, COO Thomas W. Beetham bought 5,000 shares of Viridian Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $23.41 per share, with a total value of $117,050.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $140,460. The trade was a 500.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen F. Mahoney purchased 21,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $23.33 per share, with a total value of $499,262.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 21,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $499,262. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viridian Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 14.7% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 13,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,000 after buying an additional 1,688 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 13,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 2,036 shares during the period. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 15,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. DCF Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 22.4% in the 2nd quarter. DCF Advisers LLC now owns 17,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $231,000 after purchasing an additional 3,250 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Viridian Therapeutics by 344.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 6,056 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 4,692 shares during the last quarter.

About Viridian Therapeutics

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc, a biotechnology company, discover and develops treatments for serious and rare diseases. The company's product pipeline includes VRDN-001, a monoclonal antibody targeting insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor that is in Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of thyroid eye disease (TED); and VRDN-003, a next generation IGF-1R humanized monoclonal antibodies targeting IGF-1R and incorporating half-life extension technology for the treatment of TED.