WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) Hits New 1-Year Low on Analyst Downgrade

WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. (NASDAQ:WVE)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $19.00 to $15.00. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the stock. WAVE Life Sciences traded as low as $3.00 and last traded at $3.0750, with a volume of 248,611 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.15.

WVE has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Zacks Research lowered WAVE Life Sciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of WAVE Life Sciences in a report on Thursday, October 15th. HC Wainwright initiated coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. They set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock. Wedbush set a $13.00 price target on WAVE Life Sciences in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $20.44.

Institutional Trading of WAVE Life Sciences

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WVE. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of WAVE Life Sciences in the third quarter worth about $48,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 118.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 15,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 8,430 shares during the last quarter. AlphaGrep UK Ltd bought a new position in WAVE Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $78,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 15.7% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 13,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 1,830 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Seven Fleet Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in WAVE Life Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $111,000. 89.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WAVE Life Sciences Trading Down 2.4%

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $3.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.02. The firm has a market cap of $606.48 million, a PE ratio of -2.88 and a beta of -1.40.

WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported ($0.30) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.33) by $0.03. WAVE Life Sciences had a negative return on equity of 44.66% and a negative net margin of 296.86%. The firm had revenue of $13.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.51 million. Equities analysts expect that WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About WAVE Life Sciences

WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. is a biotechnology company developing RNA-based medicines for genetically defined diseases. Founded in 2012, the company is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and uses its oligonucleotide chemistry and drug-design capabilities to develop treatments intended to alter or regulate gene expression. Its research includes antisense oligonucleotide therapies and RNA-editing approaches. Programs have targeted conditions such as Huntington’s disease and alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, with the latter exploring RNA editing to address a disease-causing genetic variant.