Jennison Associates LLC Makes New Investment in Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. $VRDN

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position of 1,154,080 shares of Viridian Therapeutics (~$35.9 million), representing about 1.21% ownership according to its most recent SEC filing.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive with 13 Buys, 1 Hold and 1 Sell and an average target price of $37.07, although several firms have recently trimmed targets while UBS initiated coverage with a $50 target.
• Despite analyst targets, the stock is trading much lower (opened at $13.42) and the company reported a disappointing quarter (EPS -$1.08 vs. -$0.90 expected and revenue $0.13M vs. $15.75M expected), leaving margins and profitability deeply negative.

Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,154,080 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,915,000. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 1.21% of Viridian Therapeutics as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 332.1% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,940 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,491 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 947.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,085 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,886 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 23.2% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,457 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 463 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRDN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 20th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Viridian Therapeutics from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wedbush decreased their target price on Viridian Therapeutics from $37.00 to $31.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Viridian Therapeutics from $42.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viridian Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.07.

Viridian Therapeutics Stock Performance

VRDN opened at $13.42 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a PE ratio of -4.08 and a beta of 0.82. Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $11.76 and a 1 year high of $34.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 12.65 and a quick ratio of 12.65.

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($1.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $0.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.75 million. Viridian Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 483.57% and a negative return on equity of 83.25%. Research analysts expect that Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.79 EPS for the current year.

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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