Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) Given Buy Rating at Stifel Nicolaus

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $40.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target indicates a potential upside of 141.40% from the stock’s current price.

VRDN has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $46.00 target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $44.00 target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, August 9th. HC Wainwright decreased their target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Viridian Therapeutics from $46.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 9th. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on Viridian Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, June 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $46.00 price objective for the company. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.57.

Viridian Therapeutics Price Performance

VRDN traded down $1.18 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $16.57. 657,354 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 648,623. The company has a current ratio of 12.09, a quick ratio of 12.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $723.61 million, a PE ratio of -3.42 and a beta of 0.91. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.08. Viridian Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $16.40 and a 1 year high of $39.00.

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 8th. The company reported ($1.27) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.26) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $0.07 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.25 million. Viridian Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 13,462.86% and a negative return on equity of 86.39%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 71.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($1.06) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Viridian Therapeutics will post -5.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Viridian Therapeutics news, insider Lara Meisner sold 2,269 shares of Viridian Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.02, for a total value of $63,577.38. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,971 shares in the company, valued at $839,787.42. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.43% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viridian Therapeutics

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. NY lifted its stake in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 47.0% during the fourth quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. NY now owns 2,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 748 shares during the period. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY grew its stake in Viridian Therapeutics by 47.0% during the 4th quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 2,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 748 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 8.2% in the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 48.8% in the second quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,199 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Viridian Therapeutics by 7.1% in the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 24,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $592,000 after buying an additional 1,645 shares during 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-002 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.