Fmr LLC Acquires 689,729 Shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA)

Fmr LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,848,776 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 689,729 shares during the quarter. Fmr LLC owned about 14.12% of Avidity Biosciences worth $773,864,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RNA. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 4,661.3% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,242,833 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $31,704,000 after purchasing an additional 1,216,730 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 71,574 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,827,000 after purchasing an additional 6,618 shares during the period. Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Avidity Biosciences during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $15,467,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky acquired a new position in Avidity Biosciences in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $533,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 2,083.7% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 96,279 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,933,000 after acquiring an additional 91,870 shares in the last quarter.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of RNA opened at $43.33 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $45.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.26. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.60 and a 52-week high of $56.00. The company has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.05 and a beta of 0.91.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.65) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.79) by $0.14. The company had revenue of $2.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.09 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 27.66% and a negative net margin of 2,772.45%. As a group, research analysts predict that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Teresa Mccarthy sold 13,153 shares of Avidity Biosciences stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total transaction of $578,732.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 69,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,036,792. The trade was a 16.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Arthur A. Levin sold 3,323 shares of Avidity Biosciences stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.12, for a total value 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 trade represents a 18.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 150,866 shares of company stock valued at $6,724,557. Company insiders own 3.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on RNA shares. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Avidity Biosciences from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $59.00 target price for the company. Chardan Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $63.00 target price for the company. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Avidity Biosciences currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $63.60.

Avidity Biosciences Company 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.