Raymond James Financial Inc. Sells 39,643 Shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. $RNA

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. reduced its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 19.9%, selling 39,643 shares and holding 159,264 shares worth approximately $4.7 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• Numerous investors have adjusted their positions in Avidity Biosciences, with Parallel Advisors LLC increasing its holdings by 43.3% during the same period.
• Analysts have a consensus Buy rating on Avidity Biosciences, with price targets ranging from $65.00 to $75.00, reflecting strong investor interest in the stock.

Raymond James Financial Inc. decreased its position in shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA - Free Report) by 19.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 159,264 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 39,643 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Avidity Biosciences worth $4,701,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 43.3% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,705 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences during the 4th quarter valued at $73,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in Avidity Biosciences by 123.2% during the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,237 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 1,787 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its position in Avidity Biosciences by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 3,915 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in Avidity Biosciences by 149.2% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,378 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $129,000 after purchasing an additional 2,621 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Avidity Biosciences

In other news, Director Troy Edward Wilson sold 65,554 shares of Avidity Biosciences stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $2,949,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,776 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $799,920. This trade represents a 78.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Steven George Hughes sold 81,434 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.74, for a total value of $3,480,489.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,661,175.58. The trade was a 67.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 541,410 shares of company stock worth $24,842,402. Corporate insiders own 3.83% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on RNA. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Avidity Biosciences from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Avidity Biosciences to a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup raised their target price on Avidity Biosciences from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Chardan Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seventeen have given a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $67.28.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of RNA stock traded down $5.36 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $41.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,323,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,509,986. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $40.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.59. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.51 and a 52 week high of $56.00. The company has a market cap of $5.28 billion, a PE ratio of -11.53 and a beta of 0.99.

Avidity Biosciences 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.