Taysha Gene Therapies (NASDAQ:TSHA) Shares Up 9% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares jumped ~9% to $5.13 on Wednesday, but the move occurred on very light volume (about an 83% decline vs. average), suggesting low-liquidity price action.
• Wall Street is broadly positive with an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $11.64, including recent upgrades and raised targets (e.g., Canaccord $17, Wells Fargo $11, Truist strong-buy).
• Taysha has strong reported liquidity (current/quick ratios of 12.23) and topped recent EPS and revenue estimates, but remains unprofitable (negative P/E) and has seen notable insider selling in recent months.

Taysha Gene Therapies, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSHA - Get Free Report) shares shot up 9% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $5.15 and last traded at $5.1360. 456,130 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 2,623,163 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.71.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on TSHA. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Taysha Gene Therapies in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Taysha Gene Therapies from $8.00 to $11.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Taysha Gene Therapies to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Taysha Gene Therapies from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Taysha Gene Therapies from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Taysha Gene Therapies has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $11.64.

Taysha Gene Therapies Stock Up 10.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 12.23 and a current ratio of 12.23. The company has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.31 and a beta of 1.10. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $4.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.73.

Taysha Gene Therapies (NASDAQ:TSHA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The company reported ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Taysha Gene Therapies, Inc. will post -0.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Taysha Gene Therapies news, CEO Sean P. Nolan sold 41,312 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.61, for a total value of $190,448.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,908,257 shares in the company, valued at $13,407,064.77. This trade represents a 1.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Kamran Alam sold 23,849 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.61, for a total transaction of $109,943.89. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 1,443,786 shares in the company, valued at $6,655,853.46. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 598,623 shares of company stock worth $2,772,188 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.78% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Taysha Gene Therapies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Taysha Gene Therapies by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 71,069 shares of the company's stock worth $391,000 after acquiring an additional 2,443 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Taysha Gene Therapies by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 166,541 shares of the company's stock worth $916,000 after acquiring an additional 2,504 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Taysha Gene Therapies by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 13,311 shares of the company's stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 2,765 shares during the period. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Taysha Gene Therapies by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 45,946 shares of the company's stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 3,008 shares during the period. Finally, Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Taysha Gene Therapies by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 16,575 shares of the company's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 3,738 shares during the period. 77.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Taysha Gene Therapies

Taysha Gene Therapies, Inc NASDAQ: TSHA is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing gene therapies for rare monogenic diseases of the central nervous system. Using a proprietary adeno-associated viral (AAV) vector platform, the company engineers novel capsids and regulatory elements to optimize delivery and expression of therapeutic genes. Its pipeline features lead programs such as TSHA-102 for GM2 gangliosidoses (Tay–Sachs and Sandhoff diseases), TSHA-101 for GM1 gangliosidosis and TSHA-103 for aromatic l-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) deficiency, alongside earlier-stage candidates targeting other life-threatening pediatric CNS disorders.

Founded in 2019 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Taysha Gene Therapies completed its initial public offering in May 2021.

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