Design Therapeutics (NASDAQ:DSGN) Stock Price Up 6.7% After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Stock jump: Design Therapeutics shares rose about 6.7% after Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target from $13 to $14 and kept an outperform rating, with the stock last trading near $10.66 on unusually light volume (~35,267 shares, down ~85% vs. average).
• Analyst sentiment: The consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $15.25, reflecting several recent buy/outperform initiations (including Oppenheimer's $18 target) alongside at least one sell opinion from Weiss Ratings.
• Company fundamentals and ownership: Design reported an EPS beat for the quarter (‑$0.27 vs. consensus ‑$0.38), has a market cap of about $599M, and institutional investors own roughly 56.6% of the stock after notable buying by firms such as Invesco and Millennium Management.

Design Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:DSGN - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 6.7% during trading on Wednesday after Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on the stock from $13.00 to $14.00. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Design Therapeutics traded as high as $10.53 and last traded at $10.66. Approximately 35,267 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 242,182 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.99.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Craig Hallum assumed coverage on Design Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partners set a $14.00 price objective on shares of Design Therapeutics and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Design Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $18.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Design Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Design Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $15.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Design Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DSGN. Corient Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Design Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth $253,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Design Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at $212,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Design Therapeutics by 1,995.8% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 305,757 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,868,000 after purchasing an additional 291,168 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd increased its position in Design Therapeutics by 197.3% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 35,284 shares of the company's stock worth $331,000 after buying an additional 23,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Design Therapeutics by 162.8% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 180,866 shares of the company's stock worth $1,697,000 after buying an additional 112,043 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.64% of the company's stock.

Design Therapeutics Stock Up 5.3%

The stock has a market cap of $599.22 million, a P/E ratio of -8.63 and a beta of 1.63. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $9.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.26.

Design Therapeutics (NASDAQ:DSGN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 9th. The company reported ($0.27) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.38) by $0.11. Equities analysts predict that Design Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Design Therapeutics

Design Therapeutics, Inc a biopharmaceutical company, researches, designs, develops, and commercializes small molecule therapeutic drugs for the treatment of genetic diseases in the United States. The company utilizes its GeneTAC platform to design and develop therapeutic candidates for inherited diseases caused by nucleotide repeat expansion. Its lead product candidates for potentially disease-modifying treatment comprises Friedreich Ataxia, a monogenic, autosomal recessive, progressive multi-system disease that affects organ systems dependent on mitochondrial function that brings to neurological, cardiac, and metabolic dysfunction; Myotonic Dystrophy Type-1, a dominantly-inherited, monogenic progressive neuromuscular disease affecting skeletal muscle, heart, brain, and other organs; Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy, a genetic eye disease characterized by bilateral degeneration of corneal endothelial cells and progressive loss of vision; and Huntington's Disease, a dominantly inherited, monogenic neurodegenerative disease characterized by movement, cognitive, and psychiatric disorders.

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