Avidity Biosciences Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:RNA)

Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 5,751 call options on the stock. Thisrepresentsanincreaseof235% compared to the typical volume of 1,715 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RNA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup upped their target price on Avidity Biosciences from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, June 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Avidity Biosciences to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Finally, Chardan Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a report on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $67.00.

Avidity Biosciences Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ RNA opened at $44.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $5.70 billion, a PE ratio of -12.46 and a beta of 0.95. Avidity Biosciences has a twelve month low of $21.51 and a twelve month high of $56.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Steven George Hughes sold 81,434 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.74, for a total transaction of $3,480,489.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,661,175.58. The trade was a 67.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Teresa Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.56, for a total value of $465,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 97,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,522,372.80. The trade was a 9.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 453,826 shares of company stock valued at $20,063,286 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.83% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avidity Biosciences

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,130,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 59.4% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 13,009 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $369,000 after acquiring an additional 4,850 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 14,163 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $402,000 after acquiring an additional 629 shares in the last quarter. Sofinnova Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 53.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sofinnova Investments Inc. now owns 584,801 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,608,000 after acquiring an additional 204,870 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. lifted its stake in Avidity Biosciences by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 625,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $17,750,000 after acquiring an additional 100,000 shares in the last quarter.

Avidity Biosciences Company Profile

Avidity Biosciences, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the delivery of RNA therapeutics. It develops antibody oligonucleotide conjugates (AOC) that are designed to treat diseases previously untreatable with RNA therapeutics. The company's lead product candidate AOC 1001 for the treatment of myotonic dystrophy type 1, a rare monogenic muscle disease that is in phase 1/2 clinical trial.