Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Twist Bioscience Corporation (NASDAQ:TWST)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Monday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $91.55, but opened at $81.60. Twist Bioscience shares last traded at $94.7080, with a volume of 551,708 shares traded.

The company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.49) by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $118.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $114.55 million. Twist Bioscience had a negative net margin of 19.85% and a negative return on equity of 26.73%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on TWST shares. Guggenheim upped their price target on Twist Bioscience from $60.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Leerink Partners set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Twist Bioscience in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Twist Bioscience from $65.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Twist Bioscience from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Twist Bioscience from $50.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $90.30.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Paula Green sold 291 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.32, for a total value of $25,410.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 120,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,514,550.48. This trade represents a 0.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Emily M. Leproust sold 18,880 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,793,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 824,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $78,283,705. The trade was a 2.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 50,211 shares of company stock worth $4,199,331. Corporate insiders own 3.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Twist Bioscience

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Twist Bioscience by 350.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 76,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,426,000 after purchasing an additional 59,500 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Twist Bioscience by 28.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 662,317 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,009,000 after purchasing an additional 147,389 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new position in Twist Bioscience during the third quarter worth about $717,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Twist Bioscience during the first quarter worth approximately $22,563,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its position in Twist Bioscience by 108.5% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 222,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,302,000 after buying an additional 115,880 shares during the last quarter.

Twist Bioscience Stock Up 5.2%

The company has a quick ratio of 2.42, a current ratio of 2.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.13. The stock has a market cap of $6.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -72.53 and a beta of 2.11.

About Twist Bioscience

Twist Bioscience Corporation is a synthetic biology company specializing in the development and commercialization of DNA-based products and solutions. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California, the company has pioneered a proprietary silicon-based DNA synthesis platform designed for high-throughput production of synthetic genes and oligonucleotides. Twist leverages semiconductor manufacturing techniques to enable precise, scalable synthesis of DNA at speeds and volumes unattainable with traditional methods.

At the core of Twist’s offering is its proprietary platform that automates the synthesis of custom DNA fragments, gene libraries, and long oligonucleotides.