Twist Bioscience Raises Capital as Insiders Sell $77M
Twist Bioscience filed equity offering prospectuses in August while its executives simultaneously sold $76.84 million in shares with zero purchases — and the stock now trades approximately 50% above t
Twist Bioscience Raises Capital as Insiders Sell $77M
NEW YORK, September 23 —
When an AI deal with Eli Lilly lifted Twist Bioscience Corporation (TWST) 33% in seven sessions to a price 50% above analyst targets, CEO Emily Leproust sold $56 million in shares on a single day, exercising options originally priced as low as $8.82. The company's most recently reported quarter missed consensus earnings estimates by 211.1%.
- Net insider sales over 90 days: $76.84 million, zero purchases; the company filed equity prospectuses in August.
- Trailing free cash flow: negative $65 million; cash $170 million, debt $110 million; 23.0% of float sold short.
The Rally Outran the Financials
Twist Bioscience manufactures synthetic genes and gene fragments for drug discovery, diagnostics, and next-generation sequencing, serving pharma, biotech, and academic customers. Trailing revenue of roughly $430 million is growing 23% year-over-year with a 52% gross margin. The Lilly AI deal is a credible inflection for a synthetic DNA platform. At $164.60, the stock is pricing certainty the financials have not yet delivered; running a DCF calculator at current prices requires growth assumptions the quarterly track record does not support.
Every Insider Is a Seller
CEO Emily Leproust exercised options originally priced at $8.82 and $26.66 per share on September 17, then sold approximately 356,546 shares across 13 tranches at prices ranging from $151.46 to $163.39, generating $56.33 million in proceeds per Form 4 filings. President and COO Patrick Finn had already sold approximately $9.2 million worth of shares in mid-August. Total net insider sales over the 90-day period reached $76.84 million against zero purchases. The company itself simultaneously issued new equity via 424B5 prospectus supplements filed August 4 and 5, placing new public investors on the opposite side of trades its own executives were completing.
| Ticker | Mkt cap | Fwd P/E | 52-wk |
|---|---|---|---|
| TWST | $10.9B | n/a | +513.7% |
| PACB | $457M | n/a | +5.4% |
| TXG | $10.5B | 396.9x | +533.3% |
| BEAM | $2.7B | n/a | +7.1% |
| CDNA | $2.9B | 42.5x | +248.9% |
| NTLA | $1.8B | n/a | -31.2% |
The Bull Case Rests on One Number
With 23.0% of the float sold short and free cash flow at negative $65 million, Twist carries both a skeptical base and a cash-burn the Lilly deal alone does not resolve. The August equity offerings suggest management anticipated needing more capital at elevated prices. The thesis turns if the next quarterly print shows Lilly revenues closing the gap toward breakeven; that is the number to watch. Absent it, a stock trading 50% above analyst consensus with every insider on record as a seller is one the company's own executives have chosen to exit. Run the free Twist Bioscience Corporation deep-dive →.
Basis Report is independent research for informational purposes. It is not investment advice and not a recommendation to buy or sell any security.
Twist Bioscience filed equity offering prospectuses in August while its executives simultaneously sold $76.84 million in shares with zero purchases — and the stock now trades approximately 50% above the average Wall Street price target of $109.58 after a 33% rally attributed to an AI deal with Eli Lilly. The company's most recently reported quarter produced a 211.1% earnings miss.