Verve Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERV) Shares Up 6.3% on Strong Earnings

Verve Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERV - Get Free Report) shot up 6.3% on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $6.48 and last traded at $6.46. 119,950 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 1,205,823 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.08.

The company reported ($0.59) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.70) by $0.11. The company had revenue of $5.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.11 million. Verve Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 1,701.70% and a negative return on equity of 39.33%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 305.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on VERV shares. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $15.00 price objective on shares of Verve Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Verve Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Verve Therapeutics from $56.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verve Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $33.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verve Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Verve Therapeutics by 18.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,832,968 shares of the company's stock worth $64,085,000 after purchasing an additional 741,753 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its stake in shares of Verve Therapeutics by 34.8% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 120,669 shares of the company's stock worth $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 31,126 shares in the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verve Therapeutics by 35.1% during the fourth quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 7,025,116 shares of the company's stock worth $97,930,000 after acquiring an additional 1,824,549 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Verve Therapeutics by 14.2% in the third quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 319,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,241,000 after acquiring an additional 39,882 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in Verve Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at $754,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.11% of the company's stock.

Verve Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $10.31 and a 200 day moving average of $11.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $533.73 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.03 and a beta of 1.94.

Verve Therapeutics Company Profile

Verve Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage genetic medicines company, engages in developing gene editing medicines for patients to treat cardiovascular diseases in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is VERVE-101, a single-course gene editing treatment that permanently turns off the PCSK9 gene in the liver; and VERVE-102, a product candidate that targets the PCSK9 gene for the treatment of HeFH.