GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• GeneDx has been upgraded from a "hold" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, signaling increased confidence in the company's stock.
• Wells Fargo raised its price objective for GeneDx from $78.00 to $95.00, while other analysts like TD Securities and Jefferies have also issued favorable ratings and targets.
• The company reported stronger than expected earnings with $0.50 per share, exceeding estimates by $0.40, and its revenue was $102.69 million, surpassing projections of $86 million.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

WGS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler started coverage on GeneDx in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $110.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price (up previously from $88.00) on shares of GeneDx in a report on Monday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on GeneDx from $78.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised GeneDx from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, TD Securities dropped their target price on GeneDx from $135.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, GeneDx currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $100.38.

GeneDx Stock Down 0.3%

NASDAQ WGS traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $101.60. The company had a trading volume of 835,293 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,009,400. GeneDx has a fifty-two week low of $25.32 and a fifty-two week high of $117.75. The company has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2,032.00 and a beta of 2.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 2.70. The firm's 50 day moving average is $80.02 and its 200 day moving average is $83.14.

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.40. GeneDx had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 0.39%. The business had revenue of $102.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.00 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that GeneDx will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at GeneDx

In related news, CFO Kevin Feeley sold 388 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.31, for a total value of $40,860.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 3,757 shares in the company, valued at approximately $395,649.67. This trade represents a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Keith A. Meister purchased 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $56.01 per share, with a total value of $5,601,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,008,629 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $168,513,310.29. This represents a 3.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 22,411 shares of company stock worth $2,085,051. Company insiders own 29.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of GeneDx

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WGS. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of GeneDx by 877.8% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 352 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in GeneDx during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in GeneDx by 151.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the period. Comerica Bank acquired a new stake in GeneDx during the 4th quarter worth $50,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in GeneDx by 3,223.5% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 565 shares of the company's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 548 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.72% of the company's stock.

About GeneDx

GeneDx Holdings Corp., through its subsidiaries, provides genomics-related diagnostic and information services. The company offers Centrellis, an AI-driven health intelligence platform that integrates digital tools and artificial intelligence allowing scientists to ingest and synthesize clinical and genomic data to deliver comprehensive health insights.