Editas Medicine (NASDAQ:EDIT) Stock Breaks Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Editas Medicine shares fell below their 200-day moving average, trading as low as $2.41 and last at $2.55, below the $2.68 average.
• Analyst sentiment remained broadly positive: six analysts rated the stock Buy and one Sell, resulting in a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $5.83.
• The company reported quarterly earnings per share of -$0.15, better than the -$0.27 consensus estimate, and revenue of $11.89 million versus the $2.85 million estimate.

Editas Medicine, Inc. (NASDAQ:EDIT - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $2.68 and traded as low as $2.41. Editas Medicine shares last traded at $2.55, with a volume of 2,097,878 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Editas Medicine from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $4.00 to $6.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Guggenheim raised shares of Editas Medicine from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $5.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH initiated coverage on shares of Editas Medicine in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $6.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Editas Medicine from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Editas Medicine from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $5.83.

Editas Medicine Stock Down 6.3%

The stock has a market capitalization of $391.63 million, a PE ratio of -3.40 and a beta of 2.08. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $2.72 and a 200-day moving average of $2.68.

Editas Medicine (NASDAQ:EDIT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by $0.12. The company had revenue of $11.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.85 million. Editas Medicine had a negative return on equity of 196.63% and a negative net margin of 157.32%. Equities research analysts expect that Editas Medicine, Inc. will post -0.80 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Editas Medicine

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Editas Medicine during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,190,000. Opaleye Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Editas Medicine by 100.4% during the 2nd quarter. Opaleye Management Inc. now owns 3,861,930 shares of the company's stock worth $12,513,000 after acquiring an additional 1,934,933 shares in the last quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Editas Medicine during the 2nd quarter worth about $4,311,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Editas Medicine by 30.7% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,972,160 shares of the company's stock worth $9,811,000 after acquiring an additional 932,382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Editas Medicine during the second quarter worth approximately $34,312,000. 71.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Editas Medicine Company Profile

Editas Medicine, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on developing genomic medicines using CRISPR-based gene-editing technologies. The company's research platforms include CRISPR/Cas9 and CRISPR/Cas12a, which are designed to make precise changes to DNA and potentially treat diseases caused by genetic abnormalities.

Editas Medicine's lead investigational program is reni-cel, formerly known as EDIT-301. Reni-cel is an ex vivo gene-editing therapy intended to treat sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia by modifying a patient's blood-forming stem cells before they are returned to the body.

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