Arizona State Retirement System Raises Stake in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA)

Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) by 12.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 25,737 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,805 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Avidity Biosciences were worth $748,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in Avidity Biosciences in the 4th quarter worth $473,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the fourth quarter worth about $1,758,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 38,308 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,114,000 after purchasing an additional 5,124 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,028,931 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $29,921,000 after purchasing an additional 38,749 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,568 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $191,000 after purchasing an additional 1,324 shares in the last quarter.

Avidity Biosciences Price Performance

NASDAQ:RNA opened at $31.11 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.80 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.91. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.56 and a 1 year high of $56.00.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.80) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.76) by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $2.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.74 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 2,772.45% and a negative return on equity of 27.66%. As a group, analysts expect that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on RNA shares. Chardan Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $63.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Citigroup assumed coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Avidity Biosciences has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.69.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Teresa Mccarthy sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.26, for a total transaction of $831,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 94,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,127,038.68. This represents a 21.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Arthur A. Levin sold 1,872 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.60, for a total value of $53,539.20. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 12,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $370,598.80. This represents a 12.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 105,138 shares of company stock valued at $3,370,532. 3.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.