Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA) Shares Purchased by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Avidity Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNA - Free Report) by 68.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 255,699 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 103,905 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.21% of Avidity Biosciences worth $11,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,000,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 32.4% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,399 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $180,000 after acquiring an additional 1,076 shares during the period. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,561,000. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. acquired a new position in shares of Avidity Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,227,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Avidity Biosciences by 46.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 363,953 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $14,867,000 after acquiring an additional 115,676 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RNA. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Monday, September 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $59.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock. Chardan Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Avidity Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. 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, November 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Avidity Biosciences has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $63.60.

Insider Activity at Avidity Biosciences

In other news, insider W. Michael Flanagan sold 24,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.77, for a total transaction of $858,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 85,389 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,054,364.53. This represents a 21.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Sarah Boyce sold 32,880 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total transaction of $1,446,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 234,663 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,325,172. This represents a 12.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 174,866 shares of company stock valued at $7,583,037. 3.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Avidity Biosciences Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of Avidity Biosciences stock traded down $0.65 on Tuesday, hitting $32.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,324,681 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,305,009. Avidity Biosciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.37 and a 52-week high of $56.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $43.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.27. The company has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.37 and a beta of 0.89.

Avidity Biosciences (NASDAQ:RNA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.65) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.79) by $0.14. Avidity Biosciences had a negative net margin of 2,772.45% and a negative return on equity of 27.66%. The firm had revenue of $2.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.09 million. As a group, analysts expect that Avidity Biosciences, Inc. will post -2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Avidity Biosciences 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.