Beam Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BEAM) Trading 17.9% Higher – Here’s Why

Beam Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAM) shares shot up 17.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $33.66 and last traded at $33.74. 751,888 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 1,107,364 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.61.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on BEAM shares. Leerink Partners upgraded Beam Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $27.00 to $39.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Beam Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Beam Therapeutics from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Leerink Partnrs raised Beam Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Beam Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.67.

Beam Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of -18.41 and a beta of 1.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $26.71 and its 200 day moving average is $25.64.

Insider Transactions at Beam Therapeutics

In other Beam Therapeutics news, CEO John M. Evans sold 30,000 shares of Beam Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.75, for a total transaction of $802,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 908,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,306,628.25. The trade was a 3.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Christine Bellon sold 1,241 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 102,968 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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. Corporate insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Beam Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Beam Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $229,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 55.0% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 15,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 5,514 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 740,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,365,000 after buying an additional 49,415 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Beam Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,308,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Beam Therapeutics by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,753,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,479,000 after acquiring an additional 266,834 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.68% of the company’s stock.

About Beam Therapeutics

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.