GeneDx Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:WGS) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Wall Street Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts rate GeneDx “Moderate Buy”: Seven of nine covering firms recommend buying, and the average 12-month price target is $90.86.
• Quarterly results beat estimates: GeneDx reported EPS of $0.01 versus expectations of a $0.19 loss, while revenue of $114.44 million topped the $111.01 million estimate.
• CEO Katherine Stueland and CFO Kevin Feeley each sold shares to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards; insiders sold 19,206 shares worth about $1.81 million in the last quarter.

Shares of GeneDx Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:WGS - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the nine ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $90.86.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WGS shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of GeneDx in a research report on Monday. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of GeneDx in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of GeneDx from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on GeneDx from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on GeneDx from $74.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 1st.

GeneDx Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of WGS opened at $69.34 on Thursday. GeneDx has a 52-week low of $32.21 and a 52-week high of $170.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $77.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.72. 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 cap of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.05 and a beta of 2.00.

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $114.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.01 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. Analysts predict that GeneDx will post -0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kevin Feeley sold 3,728 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,387,081.45. The trade was a 7.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.61, for a total value of $1,025,002.61. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 115,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,271,612.36. The trade was a 8.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,206 shares of company stock worth $1,808,056. 25.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of GeneDx

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp bought a new position in GeneDx during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Nykredit A S purchased a new position in shares of GeneDx in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of GeneDx by 851.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 666 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio boosted its stake in shares of GeneDx by 8.7% in the 1st quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 2,500 shares of the company's stock worth $161,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of GeneDx in the third quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Institutional investors own 61.72% of the company's stock.

GeneDx Company Profile

GeneDx Holdings Corp., doing business as GeneDx, is a genomic diagnostics company that provides genetic testing and interpretation services for patients with suspected rare and inherited conditions. The company combines sequencing technologies with clinical expertise and data analysis to help healthcare professionals identify genetic causes of disease and support diagnosis, treatment planning and patient management.

GeneDx's offerings include whole exome and whole genome sequencing, as well as targeted testing for specific genetic disorders and hereditary cancer conditions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.