GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Guggenheim Analyst Says

Key Points

• Guggenheim raised GeneDx’s price target to $83 from $74 and maintained a “buy” rating, implying 12.79% upside from the previous close.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: GeneDx has an average “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $90.86, while the company recently exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue expectations.
• Institutional ownership stands at 61.72%, with several major investors increasing their positions; insiders recently sold shares primarily to cover tax obligations from vested equity awards.

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by Guggenheim from $74.00 to $83.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Guggenheim's target price would indicate a potential upside of 12.79% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on WGS. Zacks Research upgraded shares of GeneDx from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on GeneDx from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen raised GeneDx from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of GeneDx in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised GeneDx from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, GeneDx currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.86.

GeneDx Stock Up 1.8%

WGS opened at $73.58 on Thursday. GeneDx has a fifty-two week low of $32.21 and a fifty-two week high of $170.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 3.06 and a current ratio of 3.30. The company has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.22 and a beta of 1.99. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $81.37 and a 200-day moving average of $67.38.

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.19) by $0.20. GeneDx had a negative net margin of 23.41% and a positive return on equity of 4.12%. The company had revenue of $114.44 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.01 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that GeneDx will post -0.41 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Kevin Feeley sold 3,728 shares of GeneDx stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.61, for a total value of $363,890.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 44,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,387,081.45. This trade represents a 7.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Katherine Stueland sold 10,501 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.61, for a total value of $1,025,002.61. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 115,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,271,612.36. This trade represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,206 shares of company stock worth $1,808,056. Company insiders own 25.17% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of GeneDx by 77.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 234,606 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,066,000 after purchasing an additional 102,456 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in GeneDx in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,177,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in GeneDx by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,220,502 shares of the company's stock valued at $158,738,000 after buying an additional 52,322 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of GeneDx by 65.9% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 633,457 shares of the company's stock worth $40,681,000 after buying an additional 251,732 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of GeneDx by 38.6% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 315,508 shares of the company's stock worth $20,262,000 after buying an additional 87,922 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.72% of the company's stock.

About GeneDx

GeneDx NASDAQ: WGS is a precision health company that provides genetic testing and related data services. The company focuses on helping healthcare professionals identify genetic conditions, support diagnosis and treatment decisions, and better understand inherited disease.

Its offerings include exome and genome sequencing, testing for rare and undiagnosed disorders, hereditary cancer testing, and other genetic analyses. GeneDx also provides clinical interpretation and reporting intended to help physicians evaluate genetic results in the context of a patient's symptoms and family history.

Founded in 2000, GeneDx has built a business around genomic testing for patients with rare diseases and other inherited conditions.

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