Beam Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BEAM) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Beam Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAM)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $30.79, but opened at $32.10. Beam Therapeutics shares last traded at $29.95, with a volume of 195,938 shares trading hands.

The company reported ($1.09) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.25) by $0.16. Beam Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 16.22% and a negative net margin of 41.07%. The business had revenue of $30.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.73 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 90.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BEAM shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Beam Therapeutics from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Beam Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Beam Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $57.00 price target on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $47.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Christine Bellon sold 1,241 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.68, for a total value of $30,627.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 102,968 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,541,250.24. This represents a 1.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO John M. Evans sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.75, for a total value of $802,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 908,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,306,628.25. The trade was a 3.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Beam Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Creative Planning boosted its position in Beam Therapeutics by 25.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 2,424 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 84.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,431 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Beam Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $15,760,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 21.3% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 62.4% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 16,087 shares of the company’s stock valued at $394,000 after acquiring an additional 6,181 shares during the period. 99.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Beam Therapeutics Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a PE ratio of -17.15 and a beta of 1.92. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $27.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.86.

Beam Therapeutics Company Profile

Beam Therapeutics Inc, a biotechnology company, engages in the development of precision genetic medicines for patients suffering from serious diseases in the United States. It develops BEAM-101 for the treatment of sickle cell disease or beta-thalassemia; and BEAM-302, a liver-targeting LNP formulation to treat severe alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency; BEAM-201, an anti-CD7 CAR-T product candidate, which is in Phase 1/2 clinical trials for the treatment of refractory T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia/T cell lymphoblastic lymphoma; and BEAM-301, a liver-targeting LNP formulation for the treatment of glycogen storage disease 1a.