1,500,000 Shares in Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. $VRDN Purchased by Avoro Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Avoro Capital Advisors disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Viridian Therapeutics, buying 1.5 million shares worth about $46.7 million. The position represents roughly 1.57% of Viridian and about 0.5% of Avoro’s portfolio.
• Several other major investors also boosted their holdings, including Vanguard, Commodore Capital, State Street, Geode Capital, and Fisher Asset Management. The filings suggest continued institutional interest in the stock despite recent volatility.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $36.14. Viridian’s shares were trading around $15.98, and the company recently reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss.

Avoro Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,500,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,680,000. Viridian Therapeutics accounts for approximately 0.5% of Avoro Capital Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC owned approximately 1.57% of Viridian Therapeutics at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 29.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,612,144 shares of the company's stock worth $174,650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,280,161 shares during the period. Commodore Capital LP increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 35.4% in the 2nd quarter. Commodore Capital LP now owns 4,875,000 shares of the company's stock worth $68,152,000 after acquiring an additional 1,275,000 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 35.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,466,560 shares of the company's stock worth $107,879,000 after acquiring an additional 912,394 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,992,174 shares of the company's stock worth $62,007,000 after acquiring an additional 225,987 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,780,284 shares of the company's stock worth $55,402,000 after acquiring an additional 579,058 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VRDN. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $29.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $32.00 target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Viridian Therapeutics from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $36.14.

Viridian Therapeutics Stock Down 2.0%

Viridian Therapeutics stock opened at $15.98 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.81 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 15.15, a quick ratio of 15.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company's 50-day moving average price is $15.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.03. Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.18 and a 52 week high of $34.29.

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.90) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.06) by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $0.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $0.04 million. Viridian Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 490.31% and a negative return on equity of 80.19%. Viridian Therapeutics's quarterly revenue was up 95.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.87) EPS. On average, analysts expect that Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Viridian Therapeutics news, Director Fairmount Funds Management Llc acquired 1,176,470 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $17.00 per share, with a total value of $19,999,990.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 5,090,928 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $86,545,776. This trade represents a 30.05% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Viridian Therapeutics

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: VRDN is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of targeted antibody therapeutics for patients suffering from rare and serious diseases. The company's lead program, VRDN-001, is a fully human monoclonal antibody that antagonizes the insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R), with an initial focus on thyroid eye disease (TED). By selectively inhibiting IGF-1R signaling, VRDN-001 aims to reduce inflammation and tissue remodeling associated with TED and related disorders.

In addition to VRDN-001, Viridian is advancing a second antibody program, VRDN-002, which targets complement-mediated pathways implicated in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

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