LENZ Therapeutics (NASDAQ:LENZ) Sees Large Volume Increase - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• LENZ Therapeutics experienced a significant increase in trading volume, with 346,455 shares traded on Monday, up by 16% from the previous session.
• Analysts are optimistic about LENZ, with several upgrades including a target price increase from $39.00 to $40.00 by Raymond James Financial and a consensus target price of $49.60.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings beat with an EPS of ($0.53), surpassing the estimate of ($0.58), and had revenue in line with expectations at $5.00 million.

LENZ Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:LENZ - Get Free Report) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Monday . Approximately 346,455 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 16% from the previous session's volume of 299,436 shares.The stock last traded at $39.60 and had previously closed at $40.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LENZ has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $49.00 target price (up from $45.00) on shares of LENZ Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on shares of LENZ Therapeutics from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of LENZ Therapeutics from $38.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $49.60.

LENZ Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day moving average is $33.95 and its 200-day moving average is $28.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.33 and a beta of 0.42.

LENZ Therapeutics (NASDAQ:LENZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported ($0.53) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.58) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $5.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.00 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that LENZ Therapeutics, Inc. will post -2.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in LENZ Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $654,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in LENZ Therapeutics by 51.4% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,405 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Scoggin Management LP lifted its position in LENZ Therapeutics by 100.0% in the second quarter. Scoggin Management LP now owns 200,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,862,000 after buying an additional 100,000 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in LENZ Therapeutics by 93.7% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,951 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 944 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in LENZ Therapeutics by 271.0% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 67,978 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,992,000 after buying an additional 49,653 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.32% of the company's stock.

About LENZ Therapeutics

LENZ Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies to improve vision in the United States. Its product candidates include LNZ100 and LNZ101 which are in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of presbyopia. The company is headquartered in Del Mar, California.