Silence Therapeutics Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:SLN)

Silence Therapeutics PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:SLN) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock traders acquired 24,155 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 4,252% compared to the typical volume of 555 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on SLN shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Silence Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Silence Therapeutics from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.50.

Silence Therapeutics Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ SLN traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $13.88. 460,017 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 541,746. The stock has a market capitalization of $655.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.84 and a beta of 1.39. Silence Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $4.19 and a 1 year high of $17.58. The business has a 50 day moving average of $10.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $7.49.

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.14) by ($0.12). Silence Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 8,943.86% and a negative return on equity of 106.94%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Silence Therapeutics will post -1.08 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Silence Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 5AM Venture Management LLC acquired a new position in Silence Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,228,676,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Silence Therapeutics by 18.1% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,698 shares in the last quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP lifted its position in Silence Therapeutics by 6.2% in the first quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 156,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $826,000 after purchasing an additional 9,159 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Silence Therapeutics by 903.8% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 29,773 shares of the company’s stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 26,807 shares during the period. Finally, ADAR1 Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Silence Therapeutics by 628.2% during the first quarter. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC now owns 172,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $907,000 after buying an additional 148,514 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.73% of the company’s stock.

About Silence Therapeutics

Silence Therapeutics plc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi) therapeutics. Leveraging its proprietary EnCore lipid nanoparticle delivery platform, the company aims to silence disease-causing genes in the liver and other tissues. Silence’s technology is designed to enhance targeted delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules, with the goal of achieving durable therapeutic effects and improved safety profiles compared with traditional drug modalities.

The company’s lead product candidates include SLN360, an siRNA therapeutic designed to reduce lipoprotein(a) levels for cardiovascular risk reduction, and SLN124, aimed at treating hereditary hemochromatosis and beta-thalassemia by modulating iron metabolism.