Wave Life Sciences’ (WVE) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright reissued their buy rating on shares of Wave Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) in a research report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $22.00 target price on the stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Wave Life Sciences from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Wave Life Sciences in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $26.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Wave Life Sciences has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.60.

Wave Life Sciences Price Performance

NASDAQ:WVE opened at $8.62 on Wednesday. Wave Life Sciences has a 1-year low of $4.25 and a 1-year high of $16.74. The business has a 50 day moving average of $10.73 and a 200 day moving average of $11.64. The company has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.77 and a beta of -1.04.

Wave Life Sciences (NASDAQ:WVE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.17) by $0.34. Wave Life Sciences had a negative net margin of 66.50% and a negative return on equity of 280.57%. The firm had revenue of $83.75 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.60 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Wave Life Sciences will post -1.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wave Life Sciences

In related news, Director Christian O. Henry sold 10,500 shares of Wave Life Sciences stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.77, for a total transaction of $102,585.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $157,443.55. This trade represents a 39.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Paul Bolno sold 169,025 shares of Wave Life Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.57, for a total transaction of $1,617,569.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 338,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,238,019.07. The trade was a 33.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 29.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Wave Life Sciences

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Wave Life Sciences in the third quarter worth about $194,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Wave Life Sciences by 209.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 844,617 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,926,000 after acquiring an additional 571,345 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Wave Life Sciences by 20.3% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 168,141 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,379,000 after acquiring an additional 28,351 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Wave Life Sciences by 174.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,540,190 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,630,000 after acquiring an additional 979,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Wave Life Sciences by 477.7% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 41,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 34,588 shares during the last quarter. 89.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wave Life Sciences Company Profile

Wave Life Sciences Ltd., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, designs, develops, and commercializes ribonucleic acid (RNA) medicines through PRISM, a discovery and drug development platform. The company's RNA medicines platform, PRISM, combines multiple modalities, chemistry innovation, and deep insights into human genetics to deliver scientific breakthroughs that treat both rare and prevalent disorders.