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

Beam Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAM) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. 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 traded.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BEAM has been the topic of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Beam Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased 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 research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Beam Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $27.00 to $39.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Beam Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $47.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Beam Therapeutics

In related news, CEO John M. Evans sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.75, for a total value of $802,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 908,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,306,628.25. The trade was a 3.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Christine Bellon sold 1,241 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.68, for a total transaction of $30,627.88. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 102,968 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,541,250.24. This trade represents a 1.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Beam Therapeutics

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

Beam Therapeutics Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a PE ratio of -17.15 and a beta of 1.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $27.17 and a 200 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.