WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) Stock Price Down 3.5% - What's Next?

Key Points

• WAVE Life Sciences stock decreased by 3.5% recently, with a trading price of $7.13, significantly lower than its average session volume.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy for WAVE Life Sciences, with an average target price of $20.33, highlighting optimism in the company's future performance.
• Insider trading activity indicates significant selling, with two directors offloading shares, leading to a 24.60% decrease in one director's holdings.

WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. (NASDAQ:WVE - Get Free Report) fell 3.5% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $7.17 and last traded at $7.13. 211,397 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 1,423,068 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.39.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WVE. Oppenheimer began coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Monday, July 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Leerink Partners set a $26.00 target price on WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. B. Riley reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $16.00 price target for the company. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, WAVE Life Sciences has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.33.

WAVE Life Sciences Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.84. The company has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.97 and a beta of -1.15.

WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported ($0.31) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.29) by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $8.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.52 million. Equities research analysts expect that WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. will post -1.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Christian O. Henry sold 9,670 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.81, for a total transaction of $85,192.70. Following the sale, the director directly owned 29,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $261,172.45. This represents a 24.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregory L. Verdine sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total value of $100,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 285,217 shares in the company, valued at $2,852,170. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 271,893 shares of company stock valued at $2,631,568 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 23.98% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of WAVE Life Sciences

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WVE. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in WAVE Life Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $157,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 961,751 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,897,000 after acquiring an additional 162,386 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in WAVE Life Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $129,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 241.5% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 142,842 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,767,000 after acquiring an additional 101,014 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 58.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 435,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,392,000 after acquiring an additional 160,820 shares during the period. 89.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WAVE Life Sciences Company Profile

Wave Life Sciences Ltd., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, designs, develops, and commercializes ribonucleic acid (RNA) medicines through PRISM, a discovery and drug development platform. The company's RNA medicines platform, PRISM, combines multiple modalities, chemistry innovation, and deep insights into human genetics to deliver scientific breakthroughs that treat both rare and prevalent disorders.

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