Baillie Gifford & Co. Acquires 118,421 Shares of Beam Therapeutics Inc. $BEAM

Key Points

• Baillie Gifford increased its stake in Beam by 39.8%, acquiring 118,421 shares in Q4 to hold 416,224 shares (about 0.41% of the company) worth roughly $11.54 million.
• Beam posted a surprise quarterly beat — $2.33 EPS vs. a -$1.13 estimate and revenue of $114.11M (vs. $13.22M expected), with revenue up 280% year‑over‑year — yet the company still has a negative net margin and negative ROE.
• Institutional ownership is very high at 99.68%, MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $49.36, while insiders have sold about 99,544 shares (~$2.59M) over the last 90 days.

Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its holdings in Beam Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAM - Free Report) by 39.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 416,224 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 118,421 shares during the quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned 0.41% of Beam Therapeutics worth $11,538,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BEAM. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 55,780.0% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 33,528 shares of the company's stock worth $655,000 after acquiring an additional 33,468 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 438,529 shares of the company's stock worth $8,564,000 after acquiring an additional 42,609 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Beam Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $201,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 17.7% in the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 30,629 shares of the company's stock worth $521,000 after acquiring an additional 4,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Beam Therapeutics by 46.0% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 128,874 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,192,000 after buying an additional 40,583 shares during the last quarter. 99.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BEAM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a report on Friday, February 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $74.00 price target for the company. Wedbush upped their price target on shares of Beam Therapeutics from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Beam Therapeutics from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Beam Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $49.36.

Beam Therapeutics Trading Up 10.0%

Shares of NASDAQ BEAM opened at $30.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a PE ratio of -29.88 and a beta of 2.18. Beam Therapeutics Inc. has a 12 month low of $15.35 and a 12 month high of $36.44.

Beam Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BEAM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.13) by $3.46. The firm had revenue of $114.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.22 million. Beam Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 57.24% and a negative return on equity of 30.65%. The company's revenue was up 280.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.09) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Beam Therapeutics Inc. will post -4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Beam Therapeutics

In other news, insider Christine Bellon sold 5,956 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.58, for a total value of $146,398.48. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 109,711 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,696,696.38. This represents a 5.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Amy Simon sold 6,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.58, for a total transaction of $164,686.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 102,735 shares in the company, valued at $2,525,226.30. This represents a 6.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 99,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,591,305 over the last 90 days. 3.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Beam Therapeutics

Beam Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: BEAM is a biotechnology company dedicated to developing precision genetic medicines through its pioneering base editing platform. Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with additional research facilities in Philadelphia, the company focuses on engineering molecular editors capable of making precise single-nucleotide changes in DNA. By harnessing its proprietary base editing technology, Beam aims to correct or disrupt disease-causing genetic variants at their source, offering the potential for novel therapies in areas with significant unmet medical need.

Founded in 2017 as a spin-out from Harvard University and the Broad and Whitehead Institutes, Beam was co-founded by leading academic researcher David R.

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