GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. BTIG Research lowered their price target on GeneDx from $200.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $150.00 target price on GeneDx in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of GeneDx in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded GeneDx from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 8th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective (up from $115.00) on shares of GeneDx in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, GeneDx has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $150.71.

GeneDx Price Performance

GeneDx stock opened at $81.38 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -108.51 and a beta of 2.00. GeneDx has a one year low of $55.17 and a one year high of $170.87. The business has a fifty day moving average of $107.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $123.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.59 and a current ratio of 2.46.

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $120.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $120.80 million. GeneDx had a negative net margin of 4.92% and a positive return on equity of 14.73%. As a group, analysts predict that GeneDx will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at GeneDx

In other news, CEO Katherine Stueland sold 1,653 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.00, for a total value of $155,382.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 16,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,547,052. This represents a 9.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Bryan Dechairo sold 5,961 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.70, for a total value of $510,857.70. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 30,961 shares of company stock worth $3,933,831. 29.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GeneDx

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of GeneDx by 59.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 786,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,288,000 after purchasing an additional 292,394 shares during the period. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in GeneDx during the 4th quarter valued at $208,000. Regal Partners Ltd increased its stake in GeneDx by 180.0% during the 4th quarter. Regal Partners Ltd now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after buying an additional 4,500 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in GeneDx in the 4th quarter worth $73,000. Finally, Twinbeech Capital LP acquired a new position in GeneDx in the 4th quarter worth $983,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.72% of the company’s stock.

About GeneDx

GeneDx is a clinical diagnostics company specializing in comprehensive genetic and genomic testing for rare and inherited disorders. The company offers a broad portfolio of assays, including targeted gene panels, whole exome sequencing, whole genome sequencing and chromosomal microarray analysis. GeneDx’s laboratory services support the diagnosis of a wide range of conditions—from rare pediatric diseases and hereditary cancer syndromes to neuromuscular and metabolic disorders—by providing clinicians with detailed variant interpretation and reporting.

Founded in 2000 and based in Gaithersburg, Maryland, GeneDx was established with the aim of accelerating the translation of genomic discoveries into clinical care.