WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) Shares Down 7.6% – Time to Sell?

WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. (NASDAQ:WVE)’s share price was down 7.6% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $6.94 and last traded at $6.9460. Approximately 883,299 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 4,273,255 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.52.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WVE has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of WAVE Life Sciences in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wedbush increased their price objective on WAVE Life Sciences from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Bank of America lowered their target price on WAVE Life Sciences from $38.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on WAVE Life Sciences in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded WAVE Life Sciences from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 12th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $27.88.

WAVE Life Sciences Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $10.03 and its 200 day moving average is $11.21. The company has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of -6.66 and a beta of -1.32.

WAVE Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.34) by $0.21. WAVE Life Sciences had a negative net margin of 255.70% and a negative return on equity of 56.76%. The business had revenue of $38.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.45 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. will post -1.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Chris Francis sold 33,194 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.05, for a total transaction of $499,569.70. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 61,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $931,098.35. The trade was a 34.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Paul Bolno sold 10,480 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.45, for a total value of $140,956.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 275,520 shares in the company, valued at $3,705,744. This trade represents a 3.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 52,373 shares of company stock valued at $757,527 in the last ninety days. 23.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WAVE Life Sciences

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WVE. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in WAVE Life Sciences by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 57,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 4,957 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in WAVE Life Sciences by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 557,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,506,000 after purchasing an additional 20,624 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in WAVE Life Sciences by 22.5% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 162,599 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,057,000 after purchasing an additional 29,899 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of WAVE Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at $80,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of WAVE Life Sciences during the 2nd quarter valued at $650,000. 89.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About WAVE Life Sciences

WAVE Life Sciences is a clinical-stage genetic medicines company focused on the discovery and development of stereopure oligonucleotide therapies designed to address serious diseases with high unmet medical need. Leveraging proprietary chemistry and precision synthesis, WAVE engineers drug candidates with defined stereochemistry to optimize potency, safety and manufacturability. This approach aims to enhance target specificity and improve therapeutic profiles compared with traditional oligonucleotide medicines.

The company’s pipeline includes programs in neuromuscular disorders such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy and neurodegenerative conditions including Huntington’s disease, as well as early-stage cardiovascular and liver indications.