California State Teachers Retirement System Acquires 7,148 Shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA)

California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA - Free Report) by 9.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 84,552 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,148 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.07% of Avidity Biosciences worth $2,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in RNA. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,053,010 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $205,134,000 after purchasing an additional 2,156,844 shares during the period. Boxer Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Avidity Biosciences in the 4th quarter valued at $50,232,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,106,097 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $235,725,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075,148 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Avidity Biosciences in the 4th quarter valued at $21,077,000. Finally, Avoro Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,500,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $218,100,000 after purchasing an additional 625,000 shares during the period.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Michael F. Maclean sold 7,935 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.06, for a total value of $246,461.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 96,720 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,004,123.20. This represents a 7.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Kathleen P. Gallagher sold 5,875 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.83, for a total value of $163,501.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 50,554 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,406,917.82. The trade was a 10.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 66,678 shares of company stock valued at $2,068,257. Company insiders own 3.83% of the company's stock.

Avidity Biosciences Trading Down 9.9%

RNA traded down $3.58 on Monday, reaching $32.66. The stock had a trading volume of 4,827,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,463,312. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $21.51 and a fifty-two week high of $56.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $29.49 and a 200-day moving average of $31.33. The company has a market capitalization of $3.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.34 and a beta of 0.95.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.90) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.88) by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.63 million. Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 2,772.45% and a negative return on equity of 27.66%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on RNA. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Citigroup began coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Chardan Capital upped their price objective on Avidity Biosciences from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays dropped their price objective on Avidity Biosciences from $63.00 to $57.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.62.

Avidity Biosciences Company Profile

Avidity Biosciences, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the delivery of RNA therapeutics. It develops antibody oligonucleotide conjugates (AOC) that are designed to treat diseases previously untreatable with RNA therapeutics. The company's lead product candidate AOC 1001 for the treatment of myotonic dystrophy type 1, a rare monogenic muscle disease that is in phase 1/2 clinical trial.