Verve Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERV) Shares Up 10.1% Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Verve Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERV)’s stock price shot up 10.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $6.73 and last traded at $6.66. 492,787 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 1,300,799 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.05.

The company reported ($0.59) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.70) by $0.11. Verve Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 35.20% and a negative net margin of 933.08%. The company had revenue of $6.87 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.72) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 120.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reduced their price target on shares of Verve Therapeutics from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Verve Therapeutics from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Verve Therapeutics from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.75.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Verve Therapeutics by 908.4% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 6,949 shares during the period. Creative Planning bought a new stake in shares of Verve Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. PFG Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verve Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Verve Therapeutics by 89.8% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 12,094 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 5,723 shares during the period. Finally, Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Verve Therapeutics by 13.5% during the second quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 14,956 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,778 shares in the last quarter. 97.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verve Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $538.22 million, a PE ratio of -2.61 and a beta of 1.75. The company’s fifty day moving average is $5.48 and its 200-day moving average is $5.69.

Verve Therapeutics Company Profile

Verve Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage genetic medicines company, engages in developing gene editing medicines for patients to treat cardiovascular diseases in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is VERVE-101, a single-course gene editing treatment that permanently turns off the PCSK9 gene in the liver; and VERVE-102, a product candidate that targets the PCSK9 gene for the treatment of HeFH.