Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) Shares Up 5.8% – Time to Buy?

Shares of Twist Bioscience Corporation (NASDAQ:TWST) were up 5.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $147.98 and last traded at $146.0890. 220,798 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 1,520,436 shares. The stock had previously closed at $138.10.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on TWST shares. BWS Financial started coverage on Twist Bioscience in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $45.00 price target on the stock. Leerink Partners set a $110.00 price objective on Twist Bioscience in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Twist Bioscience in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Twist Bioscience from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Twist Bioscience in a report on Monday, August 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $98.45.

Twist Bioscience Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $115.15 and a 200 day moving average of $80.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $9.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -65.21 and a beta of 2.22.

Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.51) by ($0.05). Twist Bioscience had a negative net margin of 31.66% and a negative return on equity of 28.64%. The business had revenue of $118.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Twist Bioscience Corporation will post -2.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Dennis Cho sold 14,205 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total transaction of $1,274,898.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 105,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,436,404.75. This represents a 11.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Adam Laponis sold 2,399 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.33, for a total value of $226,297.67. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 110,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,402,335.08. The trade was a 2.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 193,109 shares of company stock valued at $24,049,024 over the last 90 days. 3.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Twist Bioscience

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Twist Bioscience by 24.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Twist Bioscience by 54.9% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 601 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Twist Bioscience by 89.7% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 958 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 453 shares during the last quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Twist Bioscience during the second quarter valued at about $63,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Twist Bioscience by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 25,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $808,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the last quarter.

Twist Bioscience Company Profile

Twist Bioscience Corporation is a biotechnology company that develops and manufactures synthetic DNA using a proprietary silicon-based platform. The company serves researchers and organizations in biotechnology, pharmaceutical development, agriculture, industrial chemicals and academic research.

Its products include synthetic genes, gene fragments, oligonucleotides and DNA libraries used in research, drug discovery, diagnostics development and other applications. Twist also provides next-generation sequencing tools and products, including target-enrichment and sample-preparation solutions, as well as synthetic biology services that support the design and testing of biological systems.

Twist was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in South San Francisco, California.