Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Twist Bioscience Co. (NASDAQ:TWST - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $32.01, but opened at $38.28. Twist Bioscience shares last traded at $38.98, with a volume of 1,284,463 shares trading hands.

The company reported ($0.79) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.84) by $0.05. Twist Bioscience had a negative return on equity of 32.16% and a negative net margin of 78.44%. The business had revenue of $75.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.70 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.06) EPS. Twist Bioscience's revenue was up 25.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on TWST. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Twist Bioscience from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Twist Bioscience from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $25.00 to $45.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Twist Bioscience from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Twist Bioscience from $30.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Twist Bioscience from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $41.67.

Insider Activity at Twist Bioscience

In other news, Director Robert Chess sold 4,110 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total transaction of $143,767.80. Following the sale, the director now owns 64,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,244,631.62. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, COO Patrick John Finn sold 2,174 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.12, for a total value of $65,480.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 176,206 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,307,324.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert Chess sold 4,110 shares of Twist Bioscience stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total value of $143,767.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 64,169 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,244,631.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 13,211 shares of company stock valued at $449,573. Insiders own 3.92% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Twist Bioscience

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Twist Bioscience during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Twist Bioscience by 96.3% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,470 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 721 shares during the period. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Twist Bioscience during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Twist Bioscience by 51.8% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,453 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Twist Bioscience by 3,519.8% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,018 shares of the company's stock valued at $148,000 after purchasing an additional 3,907 shares during the period.

Twist Bioscience Trading Up 28.7 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.42 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a 50 day moving average of $34.03 and a 200-day moving average of $30.96.

Twist Bioscience Company Profile

Twist Bioscience Corporation engages in the manufacture and sale of synthetic DNA-based products. The company offers synthetic genes and gene fragments used in product development for therapeutics, diagnostics, chemicals/materials, food/agriculture, data storage, and various applications within academic research by biotech, pharma, industrial chemical, and agricultural companies, as well as academic labs; Oligo pools used in targeted NGS, CRISPR gene editing, mutagenesis experiments, DNA origami, DNA computing, data storage in DNA, and other applications; and immunoglobulin G proteins for customers focused on the pursuit of drug discovery and development.