Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN) to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, March 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Silence Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.50.

Silence Therapeutics Trading Down 4.1%

SLN stock opened at $6.63 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $5.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.85. Silence Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $1.97 and a 12-month high of $7.91. The company has a market capitalization of $313.13 million, a PE ratio of -3.55 and a beta of 1.32.

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported ($0.25) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.32) by $0.07. The company had revenue of $0.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 million. Silence Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 101.71% and a negative net margin of 15,851.88%. Research analysts predict that Silence Therapeutics will post -1.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Silence Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SLN. EHP Funds Inc. acquired a new stake in Silence Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Silence Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $67,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Silence Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $71,000. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd increased its stake in shares of Silence Therapeutics by 481.3% during the second quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd now owns 14,334 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 11,868 shares during the period. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Silence Therapeutics by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 13,653 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 5,421 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.73% of the company’s stock.

About Silence Therapeutics

Silence Therapeutics plc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi) therapeutics. Leveraging its proprietary EnCore lipid nanoparticle delivery platform, the company aims to silence disease-causing genes in the liver and other tissues. Silence’s technology is designed to enhance targeted delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules, with the goal of achieving durable therapeutic effects and improved safety profiles compared with traditional drug modalities.

The company’s lead product candidates include SLN360, an siRNA therapeutic designed to reduce lipoprotein(a) levels for cardiovascular risk reduction, and SLN124, aimed at treating hereditary hemochromatosis and beta-thalassemia by modulating iron metabolism.