Merck & Co. Inc. Purchases Shares of 93,414 Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. $VRDN

Merck & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRDN) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 93,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,716,015,000. Viridian Therapeutics accounts for approximately 0.3% of Merck & Co. Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRDN. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 43,985 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,369,000 after buying an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 139,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,337,000 after acquiring an additional 380 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Viridian Therapeutics by 23.2% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,457 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Viridian Therapeutics by 0.3% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 216,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,235,000 after acquiring an additional 659 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Viridian Therapeutics by 1.8% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 49,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $669,000 after acquiring an additional 876 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRDN has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen cut Viridian Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Viridian Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Viridian Therapeutics from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Viridian Therapeutics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $31.00 in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Viridian Therapeutics from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $38.93.

Viridian Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of Viridian Therapeutics stock opened at $23.09 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.85 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 16.95 and a current ratio of 16.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $19.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.16. Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $13.18 and a one year high of $34.29.

Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.03) by ($0.02). Viridian Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 505.86% and a negative return on equity of 72.97%. The firm had revenue of $0.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.06 million. Equities analysts expect that Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.07 EPS for the current year.

About Viridian Therapeutics

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc (NASDAQ: VRDN) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of targeted antibody therapeutics for patients suffering from rare and serious diseases. The company’s lead program, VRDN-001, is a fully human monoclonal antibody that antagonizes the insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R), with an initial focus on thyroid eye disease (TED). By selectively inhibiting IGF-1R signaling, VRDN-001 aims to reduce inflammation and tissue remodeling associated with TED and related disorders.

In addition to VRDN-001, Viridian is advancing a second antibody program, VRDN-002, which targets complement-mediated pathways implicated in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.