Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $17.85, but opened at $21.01. Viridian Therapeutics shares last traded at $22.72, with a volume of 2,034,720 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on VRDN shares. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, November 25th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $34.00 price objective on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Viridian Therapeutics from $25.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Viridian Therapeutics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $36.33.

Viridian Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 18.55 and a quick ratio of 18.55. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $22.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a PE ratio of -5.00 and a beta of 1.04.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Stephen F. Mahoney bought 21,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $23.33 per share, for a total transaction of $499,262.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 21,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $499,262. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Thomas W. Beetham purchased 5,000 shares of Viridian Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $23.41 per share, with a total value of $117,050.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $140,460. This trade represents a 500.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.65% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viridian Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Viridian Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at approximately $599,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 62.9% in the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 178,855 shares of the company's stock worth $2,327,000 after purchasing an additional 69,035 shares during the period. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC lifted its position in Viridian Therapeutics by 108.3% during the second quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 12,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 6,500 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 37.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 208,676 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,715,000 after purchasing an additional 56,814 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in Viridian Therapeutics by 24.6% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 11,961 shares of the company's stock worth $156,000 after buying an additional 2,359 shares in the last quarter.

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.