Teacher Retirement System of Texas Lowers Stock Holdings in Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas cut its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) by 14.2% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 22,528 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 3,740 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Avidity Biosciences were worth $665,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,028,931 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $29,921,000 after purchasing an additional 38,749 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Avidity Biosciences by 15.4% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 38,308 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,114,000 after buying an additional 5,124 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Avidity Biosciences during the 4th quarter worth $1,758,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the 4th quarter worth $5,784,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 28.5% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 27,459 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $799,000 after acquiring an additional 6,089 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Avidity Biosciences

In related news, insider W. Michael Flanagan sold 20,000 shares of Avidity Biosciences stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.88, for a total value of $657,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 80,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,636,811.60. This trade represents a 19.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Kathleen P. Gallagher sold 911 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.24, for a total value of $27,548.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 50,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,523,854.08. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 32,661 shares of company stock valued at $1,066,319. 3.83% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Avidity Biosciences Trading Down 5.6%

NASDAQ:RNA opened at $31.70 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $30.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.31. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.51 and a twelve month high of $56.00. The company has a market capitalization of $3.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.57 and a beta of 0.91.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.90) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.88) by ($0.02). Avidity Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 26.96% and a negative net margin of 4,136.00%. The company had revenue of $1.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.63 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RNA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Chardan Capital increased their price target on shares of Avidity Biosciences from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Barclays increased their target price on Avidity Biosciences from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. HC Wainwright dropped their price objective on Avidity Biosciences from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Avidity Biosciences from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Avidity Biosciences currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $66.35.

About Avidity Biosciences

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.