GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) Director Casdin Capital, Llc Acquires 185,000 Shares

Key Points

• Casdin Capital bought 185,000 shares of GeneDx on May 19 at an average price of $42.60, a $7.9 million transaction that increased its ownership by 5.81% to 3.37 million shares.
• The firm also added shares earlier in the week, purchasing 175,000 shares on May 18 and 140,000 shares on May 20, signaling continued insider confidence in the stock.
• GeneDx shares rose 6.2% to $44.73, even though the company recently reported a quarterly EPS miss and revenue below expectations; analysts still rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $96.43.

GeneDx Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:WGS - Get Free Report) Director Casdin Capital, Llc purchased 185,000 shares of GeneDx stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were bought at an average price of $42.60 per share, for a total transaction of $7,881,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,367,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at $143,441,186.40. This trade represents a 5.81% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Casdin Capital, Llc also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, May 20th, Casdin Capital, Llc purchased 140,000 shares of GeneDx stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $43.81 per share, for a total transaction of $6,133,400.00.
• On Monday, May 18th, Casdin Capital, Llc purchased 175,000 shares of GeneDx stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $42.55 per share, for a total transaction of $7,446,250.00.

GeneDx Trading Up 6.2%

Shares of NASDAQ WGS traded up $2.60 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $44.73. 1,140,005 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,984,668. GeneDx Holdings Corp. has a 12-month low of $32.21 and a 12-month high of $170.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 2.95 and a current ratio of 3.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $61.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.89. The firm has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.69 and a beta of 2.06.

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The company reported ($0.28) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by ($0.22). GeneDx had a positive return on equity of 9.15% and a negative net margin of 17.58%.The business had revenue of $102.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $112.46 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.23) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that GeneDx Holdings Corp. will post -1 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on WGS shares. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $130.00 price objective (down from $160.00) on shares of GeneDx in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $75.00 price objective (down from $155.00) on shares of GeneDx in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $75.00 price objective on shares of GeneDx and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on shares of GeneDx from $100.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, BTIG Research dropped their price objective on shares of GeneDx from $170.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $96.43.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of GeneDx by 77.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 234,606 shares of the company's stock worth $15,066,000 after buying an additional 102,456 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of GeneDx by 31.2% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 25,045 shares of the company's stock worth $1,608,000 after buying an additional 5,951 shares in the last quarter. Ashford Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of GeneDx by 31.9% in the first quarter. Ashford Capital Management Inc. now owns 174,512 shares of the company's stock worth $11,207,000 after buying an additional 42,186 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of GeneDx by 99.2% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 3,810 shares of the company's stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 1,897 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Light Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of GeneDx in the first quarter worth approximately $15,601,000. Institutional investors own 61.72% of the company's stock.

About GeneDx

GeneDx is a clinical diagnostics company specializing in comprehensive genetic and genomic testing for rare and inherited disorders. The company offers a broad portfolio of assays, including targeted gene panels, whole exome sequencing, whole genome sequencing and chromosomal microarray analysis. GeneDx's laboratory services support the diagnosis of a wide range of conditions—from rare pediatric diseases and hereditary cancer syndromes to neuromuscular and metabolic disorders—by providing clinicians with detailed variant interpretation and reporting.

Founded in 2000 and based in Gaithersburg, Maryland, GeneDx was established with the aim of accelerating the translation of genomic discoveries into clinical care.

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