Avidity Biosciences, Inc. $RNA Shares Sold by Casdin Capital LLC

Casdin Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) by 43.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,000,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 780,000 shares during the quarter. Avidity Biosciences accounts for approximately 4.5% of Casdin Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Casdin Capital LLC owned about 0.65% of Avidity Biosciences worth $72,130,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of RNA. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 38.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 44,304 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,308,000 after purchasing an additional 12,241 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 22.7% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 23,837 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $704,000 after purchasing an additional 4,410 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 784,704 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $23,164,000 after acquiring an additional 21,649 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Avidity Biosciences by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 357,718 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $10,560,000 after acquiring an additional 25,329 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the 1st quarter valued at about $180,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RNA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Avidity Biosciences from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, May 15th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. HC Wainwright restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Avidity Biosciences from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Avidity Biosciences presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $71.25.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of RNA opened at $12.48 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $213.48 million, a PE ratio of -2.51 and a beta of 0.93. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $11.40 and a 1 year high of $16.77.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.97) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.05) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $19.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.00 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 44.92% and a negative net margin of 3,650.39%. Analysts predict that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 EPS for the current year.

About Avidity Biosciences

Avidity Biosciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing antibody-oligonucleotide conjugate (AOC) therapies designed to address serious neuromuscular and cardiac diseases. The company’s proprietary AOC platform combines the targeting specificity of monoclonal antibodies with the gene-modulating power of oligonucleotides to deliver therapeutic agents directly into muscle cells. Headquartered in La Jolla, California, Avidity seeks to overcome traditional delivery challenges associated with RNA-based medicines by leveraging receptor-mediated uptake mechanisms.

The company’s lead product candidate, AOC 1001, is in clinical development for myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) and represents the first application of the AOC platform in a human study.