Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $25.71, but opened at $27.04. Viridian Therapeutics shares last traded at $24.62, with a volume of 368,876 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRDN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a report on Monday, July 29th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, October 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $25.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.80.

Viridian Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a PE ratio of -5.68 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 15.82 and a current ratio of 15.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $22.04 and its 200-day moving average is $16.78.

Insider Activity at Viridian Therapeutics

In related news, COO Thomas W. Beetham acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $23.41 per share, for a total transaction of $117,050.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 6,000 shares in the company, valued at $140,460. The trade was a 500.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Viridian Therapeutics news, COO Thomas W. Beetham bought 5,000 shares of Viridian Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $23.41 per share, for a total transaction of $117,050.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,000 shares in the company, valued at $140,460. This represents a 500.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Fairmount Funds Management Llc bought 1,600,000 shares of Viridian Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.75 per share, for a total transaction of $30,000,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,445,813 shares in the company, valued at $64,608,993.75. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 1,626,400 shares of company stock valued at $30,616,312. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Viridian Therapeutics by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 28,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 23.4% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 82,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,452,000 after purchasing an additional 15,700 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 7.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,234,279 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,632,000 after purchasing an additional 233,331 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 19.2% during the 1st quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 4,961 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American International Group Inc. increased its holdings in Viridian Therapeutics by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 24,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 3,266 shares in the last quarter.

Viridian Therapeutics Company Profile

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc, a biotechnology company, discover and develops treatments for serious and rare diseases. The company's product pipeline includes VRDN-001, a monoclonal antibody targeting insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor that is in Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of thyroid eye disease (TED); and VRDN-003, a next generation IGF-1R humanized monoclonal antibodies targeting IGF-1R and incorporating half-life extension technology for the treatment of TED.