Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Silence Therapeutics shares surged 35%, opening at $16.70 versus a prior close of $11.95 and later trading near $16.79 on heavy volume.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $75 price target, although one firm maintains a sell rating.
• The clinical-stage biotech reported a quarterly EPS loss of $0.27, missing the $0.14 consensus estimate, and continues to post significant negative margins and returns.

Silence Therapeutics PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:SLN - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $11.95, but opened at $16.70. Silence Therapeutics shares last traded at $16.7930, with a volume of 7,146,276 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on SLN shares. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Silence Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an "overweight" rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.00.

Silence Therapeutics Trading Up 35.0%

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.18. The company has a market capitalization of $761.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.17 and a beta of 1.39.

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($0.27) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($0.13). Silence Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 8,943.86% and a negative return on equity of 105.34%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Silence Therapeutics PLC Sponsored ADR will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SLN. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Silence Therapeutics by 18.1% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,063 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,698 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in Silence Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $71,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Silence Therapeutics by 65.9% during the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 13,653 shares of the company's stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 5,421 shares during the last quarter. Massar Capital Management LP bought a new position in Silence Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at about $115,000. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC bought a new position in Silence Therapeutics during the third quarter valued at about $112,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.73% of the company's stock.

Silence Therapeutics Company Profile

Silence Therapeutics plc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi) therapeutics. Leveraging its proprietary EnCore lipid nanoparticle delivery platform, the company aims to silence disease-causing genes in the liver and other tissues. Silence's technology is designed to enhance targeted delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules, with the goal of achieving durable therapeutic effects and improved safety profiles compared with traditional drug modalities.

The company's lead product candidates include SLN360, an siRNA therapeutic designed to reduce lipoprotein(a) levels for cardiovascular risk reduction, and SLN124, aimed at treating hereditary hemochromatosis and beta-thalassemia by modulating iron metabolism.

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