Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN - Get Free Report) shares gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $18.93, but opened at $18.13. Viridian Therapeutics shares last traded at $17.21, with a volume of 372,489 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VRDN. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $27.00 price objective (down previously from $37.00) on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Monday, November 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $25.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $35.70.

Viridian Therapeutics Stock Performance

The business's 50-day moving average price is $21.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.06. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.35 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 18.55 and a current ratio of 18.55.

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($1.15) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.11) by ($0.04). Viridian Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 70.12% and a negative net margin of 85,127.16%. The company had revenue of $0.09 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $0.08 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Thomas W. Beetham acquired 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $23.41 per share, with a total value of $117,050.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,000 shares in the company, valued at $140,460. This represents a 500.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Stephen F. Mahoney bought 21,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $23.33 per share, for a total transaction of $499,262.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 21,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $499,262. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Viridian Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 16.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,183,478 shares of the company's stock worth $254,424,000 after purchasing an additional 1,610,130 shares during the last quarter. Novo Holdings A S increased its stake in Viridian Therapeutics by 81.8% in the 2nd quarter. Novo Holdings A S now owns 2,000,000 shares of the company's stock worth $26,020,000 after acquiring an additional 900,000 shares during the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 22.9% during the 2nd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 3,307,945 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,036,000 after acquiring an additional 615,531 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 167.8% in the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 749,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,754,000 after purchasing an additional 469,804 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC bought a new stake in Viridian Therapeutics in the third quarter worth $9,669,000.

About Viridian Therapeutics

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc, a biotechnology company, discover and develops treatments for serious and rare diseases. The company's product pipeline includes VRDN-001, a monoclonal antibody targeting insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor that is in Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of thyroid eye disease (TED); and VRDN-003, a next generation IGF-1R humanized monoclonal antibodies targeting IGF-1R and incorporating half-life extension technology for the treatment of TED.