Beam Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAM) Short Interest Up 21.2% in March

Beam Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAM - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,740,000 shares, a growth of 21.2% from the March 15th total of 12,160,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,990,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.4 days. Currently, 18.6% of the company's stock are short sold.

Beam Therapeutics Stock Down 3.2 %

NASDAQ:BEAM traded down $0.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $19.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,222,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,385,654. Beam Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $13.53 and a 1 year high of $35.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of -11.09 and a beta of 2.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $22.18 and a 200-day moving average of $24.73.

Beam Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BEAM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported ($1.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.25) by $0.16. The business had revenue of $30.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.47 million. Beam Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 16.22% and a negative net margin of 41.07%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 90.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.73 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Beam Therapeutics will post -4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on BEAM shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Beam Therapeutics from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 7th. Jones Trading upgraded shares of Beam Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $34.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Beam Therapeutics

In other Beam Therapeutics news, President Giuseppe Ciaramella sold 7,434 shares of Beam Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.35, for a total value of $136,413.90. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 190,216 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,490,463.60. The trade was a 3.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John M. Evans sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.75, for a total value of $802,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 908,659 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,306,628.25. This trade represents a 3.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 73,771 shares of company stock worth $1,605,698. 4.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Beam Therapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Beam Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in Beam Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 816.0% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,409 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 2,146 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 20.4% in the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 3,153 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its stake in Beam Therapeutics by 103.2% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,143 shares of the company's stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 2,104 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.68% of the company's stock.

About Beam Therapeutics

Beam Therapeutics Inc, a biotechnology company, engages in the development of precision genetic medicines for patients suffering from serious diseases in the United States. It develops BEAM-101 for the treatment of sickle cell disease or beta-thalassemia; and BEAM-302, a liver-targeting LNP formulation to treat severe alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency; BEAM-201, an anti-CD7 CAR-T product candidate, which is in Phase 1/2 clinical trials for the treatment of refractory T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia/T cell lymphoblastic lymphoma; and BEAM-301, a liver-targeting LNP formulation for the treatment of glycogen storage disease 1a.