Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. $VRDN Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. sold 181,338 shares of Viridian Therapeutics, reducing its stake by 47.8% to approximately 0.24% of the company's stock, now valued at $2.67 million.
• Viridian Therapeutics' stock opened at $19.23, reflecting a significant 6.7% increase and a market cap of $1.57 billion, with a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.02.
• Analysts have provided mixed ratings, with target price changes; Oppenheimer raised its target from $28.00 to $32.00, while several others decreased their targets, maintaining a consensus average of $37.00.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN - Free Report) by 47.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 198,258 shares of the company's stock after selling 181,338 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.24% of Viridian Therapeutics worth $2,673,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VRDN. Knott David M Jr grew its position in Viridian Therapeutics by 20.0% during the 1st quarter. Knott David M Jr now owns 30,000 shares of the company's stock worth $404,000 after purchasing an additional 5,000 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Viridian Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $3,352,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 44.3% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 47,771 shares of the company's stock worth $644,000 after acquiring an additional 14,672 shares during the period. DCF Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 108.5% during the first quarter. DCF Advisers LLC now owns 62,029 shares of the company's stock worth $836,000 after acquiring an additional 32,279 shares during the period. Finally, J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 99.4% during the first quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 72,672 shares of the company's stock worth $980,000 after acquiring an additional 36,219 shares during the period.

Viridian Therapeutics Stock Down 0.5%

VRDN traded down $0.10 on Wednesday, reaching $18.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 522,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 905,143. The company has a quick ratio of 11.01, a current ratio of 11.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $9.90 and a fifty-two week high of $27.20. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $16.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.15. The company has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.85 and a beta of 0.42.

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($1.00) EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($1.00). Viridian Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 112,806.88% and a negative return on equity of 78.95%. The firm had revenue of $0.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $0.05 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.81) EPS. Viridian Therapeutics's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRDN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research report on Monday. They set a "buy" rating and a $44.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, JMP Securities lowered their price objective on Viridian Therapeutics from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Viridian Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.78.

Viridian Therapeutics Company Profile

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc, a biotechnology company, discover and develops treatments for serious and rare diseases. The company's product pipeline includes VRDN-001, a monoclonal antibody targeting insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor that is in Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of thyroid eye disease (TED); and VRDN-003, a next generation IGF-1R humanized monoclonal antibodies targeting IGF-1R and incorporating half-life extension technology for the treatment of TED.