Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) Stock Falls 9.7% Following Insider Selling

Key Points

• Twist Bioscience shares fell nearly 10% to about $185 after multiple insiders sold stock, including CEO Emily Leproust. The sales were primarily made under a Rule 10b5-1 plan or to cover tax obligations from vested equity awards.
• The company reported strong revenue growth, with quarterly revenue rising 23.2% year over year to $118.4 million and exceeding estimates, but it missed its EPS forecast and remains unprofitable.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $115.27 price target, although the stock’s elevated valuation, high volatility and trading well above its moving averages present risks.

Twist Bioscience Corporation (NASDAQ:TWST - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 9.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $186.61 and last traded at $185.0970. 1,748,314 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 8% from the average daily volume of 1,618,778 shares. The stock had previously closed at $205.00.

Specifically, CAO Robert Werner sold 1,482 shares of Twist Bioscience stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.88, for a total transaction of $279,920.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 42,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,106,162.96. The trade was a 3.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Dennis Cho sold 9,514 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.88, for a total value of $1,797,004.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 63,789 shares in the company, valued at $12,048,466.32. This trade represents a 12.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In other news, CEO Emily M. Leproust sold 45,736 shares of Twist Bioscience stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.88, for a total transaction of $8,638,615.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 567,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at $107,153,135.04. The trade was a 7.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Twist Bioscience from $65.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Twist Bioscience from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Twist Bioscience in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Twist Bioscience from $85.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on Twist Bioscience from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $115.27.

Twist Bioscience News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Twist Bioscience this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Higher analyst target: Leerink raised its price target for Twist Bioscience from $120 to $160, signaling improved expectations for the company’s growth prospects. Guggenheim also recently lifted its target to $212 and maintained a Buy rating. Leerink raises target for Twist Bioscience stock from USD 120 to USD 160
• Positive Sentiment: Solid revenue growth: Twist reported quarterly revenue of $118.4 million, above the $114.6 million consensus estimate and up 23.2% year over year. The growth supports the bullish case for its synthetic-DNA platform and life-sciences applications. Twist Bioscience stock reports 23 percent revenue growth
• Positive Sentiment: Technical and sector momentum: TWST reached a new 52-week high, while strong performance among genomics companies in Cathie Wood’s ARK Genomic Revolution ETF may be attracting additional momentum-oriented investors. Twist Bioscience Reaches New 52-Week High
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider selling: CEO Emily Leproust, CFO Adam Laponis, CAO Robert Werner, SVP Paula Green and insider Dennis Cho sold shares worth several million dollars. The sales were made under a Rule 10b5-1 plan or to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards, limiting their value as a bearish signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability and valuation concerns: Twist missed its latest EPS estimate, remains unprofitable and is expected to post a full-year loss. With the stock trading well above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, investors face elevated expectations and potential volatility.

Twist Bioscience Trading Down 9.9%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $138.77 and a 200-day moving average of $93.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 2.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -84.96 and a beta of 2.19.

Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.51) by ($0.05). Twist Bioscience had a negative return on equity of 28.64% and a negative net margin of 31.66%.The firm had revenue of $118.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.33 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Twist Bioscience Corporation will post -2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Twist Bioscience

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of TWST. QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Twist Bioscience in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $277,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new position in Twist Bioscience in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,333,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Twist Bioscience during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $99,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Twist Bioscience by 54.9% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 601 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, Nykredit A S bought a new position in Twist Bioscience during the second quarter worth about $283,000.

About Twist Bioscience

Twist Bioscience Corporation NASDAQ: TWST is a biotechnology company that develops and manufactures synthetic DNA using a silicon-based production platform. Its technology is designed to enable the precise, high-throughput synthesis of DNA at smaller scale and with potentially lower material consumption than traditional methods.

The company provides synthetic DNA products and services for applications in drug discovery and development, biotechnology research, agriculture, industrial chemicals and other life sciences markets.

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