LENZ Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:LENZ) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of LENZ Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:LENZ) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $56.40.

LENZ has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of LENZ Therapeutics in a report on Monday, December 15th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 target price (up previously from $40.00) on shares of LENZ Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of LENZ Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of LENZ Therapeutics to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of LENZ Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th.

LENZ Therapeutics Trading Down 4.1%

Shares of LENZ opened at $16.89 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $528.49 million, a P/E ratio of -8.00 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50-day moving average of $27.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.19. LENZ Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $15.70 and a 12-month high of $50.40.

LENZ Therapeutics (NASDAQ:LENZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.59) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.67) by $0.08. The business had revenue of $12.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 million. As a group, analysts forecast that LENZ Therapeutics will post -2.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at LENZ Therapeutics

In related news, CFO Daniel R. Chevallard bought 2,198 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $22.76 per share, with a total value of $50,026.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 5,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $122,585.36. The trade was a 68.95% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Shawn Olsson sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.10, for a total value of $261,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 4,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $123,531.30. This trade represents a 67.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 6.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of LENZ Therapeutics by 1.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,199,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,838,000 after acquiring an additional 21,015 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in LENZ Therapeutics by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 21,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 2,400 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in LENZ Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at about $1,724,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of LENZ Therapeutics by 8.1% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 30,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $784,000 after purchasing an additional 2,272 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in shares of LENZ Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $168,000. 54.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LENZ Therapeutics

LENZ Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies to improve vision in the United States. Its product candidates include LNZ100 and LNZ101 which are in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of presbyopia. The company is headquartered in Del Mar, California.