Insider Selling: Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ:TWST) SVP Sells $1,905,421.44 in Stock

Twist Bioscience Corporation (NASDAQ:TWST) SVP Paula Green sold 10,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.88, for a total value of $1,905,421.44. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 106,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,140,652.16. The trade was a 8.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Paula Green also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, September 21st, Paula Green sold 294 shares of Twist Bioscience stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.49, for a total value of $48,654.06.

Twist Bioscience Price Performance

TWST stock opened at $155.65 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $141.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.17. Twist Bioscience Corporation has a 12-month low of $23.30 and a 12-month high of $219.71. 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 company has a market cap of $9.76 billion, a PE ratio of -70.11 and a beta of 2.19.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on TWST shares. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Twist Bioscience in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Twist Bioscience from $107.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on shares of Twist Bioscience from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Twist Bioscience from $85.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Twist Bioscience from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.18.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Twist Bioscience

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Twist Bioscience during the second quarter valued at approximately $600,191,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Twist Bioscience during the second quarter worth $223,722,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Twist Bioscience in the second quarter valued at $94,922,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Twist Bioscience in the first quarter valued at $22,563,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Twist Bioscience during the 2nd quarter valued at $19,722,000.

Key Headlines Impacting Twist Bioscience

Here are the key news stories impacting Twist Bioscience this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent business momentum remains intact: Twist’s latest quarterly update included record revenue of $118.4 million, revenue growth of 23% year over year, gross margin above 52%, and higher full-year revenue guidance. Revenue also exceeded analyst expectations, although the company remained loss-making.
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly collaboration initially boosted enthusiasm: News of the Lilly TuneLab partnership helped drive a substantial rally, reflecting investor interest in Twist’s synthetic-DNA platform and potential drug-discovery applications. However, the durability and strategic value of the collaboration are now being debated.
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts remain constructive: Guggenheim reportedly raised its price target to $212 and maintained a buy rating, while broader analyst coverage still reflects a “Moderate Buy” consensus. Twist Bioscience stock gained after Lilly deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider transactions were largely prearranged: CEO Emily Leproust sold shares under a Rule 10b5-1 plan, including stock used for tax withholding, while other executives also reported sales. These transactions do not necessarily indicate discretionary bearish views, but the concentration of selling has attracted investor attention. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and valuation pressure: Recent filings showed sales by Leproust and other insiders, while reported insider activity over the past six months contained sales but no purchases. With TWST trading far above many older analyst targets and still posting losses, the filings encouraged profit-taking after the stock’s major run-up.
• Negative Sentiment: Partnership skepticism and dilution concerns: Analysts questioning the eventual strategic payoff from the Lilly deal weakened the bullish narrative. Investors are also mindful of Twist’s $300 million August stock offering, which increased potential dilution.

Twist Bioscience Company Profile

Twist Bioscience Corporation (NASDAQ:TWST) is a biotechnology company that develops and manufactures synthetic DNA using a silicon-based production platform. Its technology is designed to enable the precise, high-throughput synthesis of DNA at smaller scale and with potentially lower material consumption than traditional methods.

The company provides synthetic DNA products and services for applications in drug discovery and development, biotechnology research, agriculture, industrial chemicals and other life sciences markets.