WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) Trading 5.5% Higher - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• WAVE shares jumped 5.5% to $7.32 on Tuesday on light volume (529,421 shares, down 87% vs. average) and trade well below their 50- and 200-day moving averages ($10.38 and $11.27), with a market cap of about $1.38 billion.
• The company reported an earnings beat (EPS ($0.13) vs. ($0.34) expected and revenue $38.25M vs. $8.45M expected) but remains unprofitable; several firms have cut price targets while the MarketBeat consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average target of $30.63.
• Insiders have been sellers recently (including the CEO and CFO) — insiders own ~24% of the stock while institutional investors/hedge funds hold ~89.7% — signaling heavy institutional ownership alongside notable insider selling.

WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. (NASDAQ:WVE - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 5.5% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $7.35 and last traded at $7.3240. 529,421 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 4,232,369 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reduced their price objective on shares of WAVE Life Sciences from $30.00 to $18.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Bank of America lowered their price target on WAVE Life Sciences from $38.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wedbush upped their price target on WAVE Life Sciences from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on WAVE Life Sciences from $27.00 to $13.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of WAVE Life Sciences from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Sunday, April 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.63.

WAVE Life Sciences Stock Performance

The business's fifty day moving average price is $10.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.27. The stock has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a PE ratio of -6.00 and a beta of -1.32.

WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.34) by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $38.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.45 million. WAVE Life Sciences had a negative net margin of 478.35% and a negative return on equity of 85.69%. Analysts forecast that WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. will post -1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at WAVE Life Sciences

In other news, CFO Kyle Moran sold 3,588 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.45, for a total transaction of $48,258.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 134,385 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,807,478.25. This trade represents a 2.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Paul Bolno sold 10,480 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.45, for a total transaction of $140,956.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 275,520 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,705,744. The trade was a 3.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 52,373 shares of company stock worth $757,527. 23.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WAVE Life Sciences

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of WAVE Life Sciences by 736.5% in the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 258,011 shares of the company's stock worth $1,889,000 after buying an additional 227,167 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 678,144.7% in the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,750,693 shares of the company's stock worth $27,455,000 after buying an additional 3,750,140 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in WAVE Life Sciences in the third quarter worth about $375,000. Knott David M Jr increased its position in WAVE Life Sciences by 125.0% in the third quarter. Knott David M Jr now owns 90,000 shares of the company's stock worth $659,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in WAVE Life Sciences in the third quarter worth about $307,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.73% of the company's stock.

WAVE Life Sciences Company Profile

WAVE Life Sciences is a clinical-stage genetic medicines company focused on the discovery and development of stereopure oligonucleotide therapies designed to address serious diseases with high unmet medical need. Leveraging proprietary chemistry and precision synthesis, WAVE engineers drug candidates with defined stereochemistry to optimize potency, safety and manufacturability. This approach aims to enhance target specificity and improve therapeutic profiles compared with traditional oligonucleotide medicines.

The company's pipeline includes programs in neuromuscular disorders such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy and neurodegenerative conditions including Huntington's disease, as well as early-stage cardiovascular and liver indications.

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