WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) Issues Earnings Results

WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The company reported ($0.32) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.30) by ($0.02), Zacks reports.

WAVE Life Sciences Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WVE traded down $0.21 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $7.66. The stock had a trading volume of 171,826 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,672,958. The stock has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.53 and a beta of -1.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.55. WAVE Life Sciences has a 12-month low of $5.28 and a 12-month high of $16.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WVE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of WAVE Life Sciences in a research note on Monday, July 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of WAVE Life Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Leerink Partners set a $26.00 target price on WAVE Life Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Citigroup initiated coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $16.00 price target for the company. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group assumed coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a report on Monday, August 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.08.

Insider Transactions at WAVE Life Sciences

In other WAVE Life Sciences news, CEO Paul Bolno sold 217,351 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.10, for a total transaction of $2,195,245.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 121,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,222,100. This represents a 64.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gregory L. Verdine sold 10,000 shares of WAVE Life Sciences stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 285,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,852,170. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 237,021 shares of company stock worth $2,380,438. 23.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of WAVE Life Sciences

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WVE. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in WAVE Life Sciences by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 15,016,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,607,000 after buying an additional 2,500,000 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in WAVE Life Sciences by 20.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 645,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,196,000 after purchasing an additional 110,295 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its holdings in WAVE Life Sciences by 57.8% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 591,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,844,000 after purchasing an additional 216,520 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in WAVE Life Sciences by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 557,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,506,000 after purchasing an additional 20,624 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of WAVE Life Sciences by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 163,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,064,000 after purchasing an additional 7,913 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.73% of the company’s stock.

WAVE Life Sciences Company Profile

Wave Life Sciences Ltd., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, designs, develops, and commercializes ribonucleic acid (RNA) medicines through PRISM, a discovery and drug development platform. The company's RNA medicines platform, PRISM, combines multiple modalities, chemistry innovation, and deep insights into human genetics to deliver scientific breakthroughs that treat both rare and prevalent disorders.