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Twist Bioscience TWST Stock Jumps On Lilly AI Deal

ELLIS HOBBS•UPDATED SEP. 17, 2026, 12:32 PM ET
Reviewed by Matt Monacoand Fact-checked by Bryce Tuohey

Twist Bioscience Corporation stocks have been trading up by 11.43 percent following strong synthetic biology demand and expansion optimism.

Key Takeaways

  • Shares of TWST bounced after a new agreement to feed antibody characterization data into Eli Lilly’s AI/ML drug discovery platform, TuneLab.
  • The stock climbed roughly 1.5% to more than 4% in various sessions as traders cheered the Lilly TuneLab collaboration and AI exposure.
  • Q3 FY26 revenue hit $118.4M, up more than 23% year over year, with gross margin up to 52.8% and full-year revenue guidance raised to $456–457M.
  • UBS started coverage on TWST with a Neutral rating but a bullish $144 price target, well ahead of the existing analyst mean at $87.56.
  • Management signaled its pilot work on AI-designed mini-binder proteins for Anthropic is already baked into the fiscal 2027 outlook, limiting surprise upside from that project.

Candlestick Chart

Live Update At 12:31:58 EDT: On Thursday, September 17, 2026 Twist Bioscience Corporation stock [NASDAQ: TWST] is trending up by 11.43%! Discover the key drivers behind this movement as well as our expert analysis in the detailed breakdown below.

Quick Financial Overview

Twist Bioscience, ticker TWST, is trading like a high‑beta growth name with a story that is starting to line up with the numbers. The daily chart shows a strong push from a close of $143.07 on 2026/09/16 to $159.43 on 2026/09/17, following several sessions of higher lows from around the $124–128 area earlier in the month. That is a clear momentum shift back to the upside.

Intraday, TWST has been grinding higher rather than spiking and fading. On the 5‑minute chart, the stock opened near $151 and pushed toward an intraday high around $163.70 before settling in the high $150s. That tells traders there is real dip‑buying support and controlled profit‑taking, not just a one‑and‑done news pop.

More Breaking News

Fundamentally, TWST reported Q3 FY26 revenue of $118.4M, more than 23% year‑over‑year growth and its 14th straight quarter of gains. Gross margin expanded to 52.8%, and the company raised full‑year revenue guidance to $456–457M while reaffirming a target for adjusted EBITDA breakeven in Q4 FY26. For a tools company still posting negative margins at the bottom line, that move toward breakeven is key for longer‑term sentiment.

Why Traders Are Watching TWST After The Lilly TuneLab Deal

Traders are glued to TWST right now because the story finally ties together AI hype, big‑pharma validation, and hard financial progress. The latest catalyst is the agreement for Twist Bioscience to provide antibody characterization data and related services to Eli Lilly’s AI/ML TuneLab platform. In plain English, TWST will run wet‑lab antibody experiments and feed that data into Lilly’s AI models so those models can design and optimize new antibody drugs faster.

The market reaction was clear. Multiple reports cite TWST shares rising between about 1.5% and over 4% after the Lilly TuneLab deal hit the tape. When you see a stock trending higher on both the headline and the follow‑through sessions, that tells you funds were looking for an excuse to add exposure. This is not random chat‑room volume; it is a response to a blue‑chip partner betting on TWST’s lab and data pipeline.

This Lilly agreement also fits the bigger positioning story. TWST is already pitched as a “picks‑and‑shovels” supplier to drug discovery, selling synthetic DNA and NGS tools into a wide customer base. Integrating into a top pharma’s AI stack turns that narrative up a notch. It signals that Twist Bioscience is becoming part of the core infrastructure for AI‑driven biology, not just a commodity reagent vendor.

On top of that, UBS stepped in with coverage at a Neutral rating but a striking $144 price target, well above the broader analyst mean of $87.56. Even a neutral call with that kind of upside target tells traders that Street models expect strong long‑term growth from TWST once it crosses that EBITDA breakeven line it has guided to for Q4 FY26.

Conclusion

For active traders, TWST is a classic momentum‑meets‑fundamentals setup. The Lilly TuneLab agreement shows that Twist Bioscience’s antibody characterization and data capabilities are good enough for a heavyweight like Eli Lilly to plug directly into its AI workflows. The Anthropic mini‑binder work underscores the same theme: TWST is wiring itself into the AI biology stack, even if management is clear that the Anthropic project is already reflected in its fiscal 2027 outlook and not some hidden upside.

Under the hood, the numbers are catching up. Fourteen straight quarters of revenue growth, 23%+ year‑over‑year expansion in Q3 FY26, and gross margins above 50% all support a premium tools‑stock narrative. The reiterated path to adjusted EBITDA breakeven in Q4 FY26 adds a potential inflection point that many high‑growth names lack. Yes, profitability metrics remain negative today, but the cash‑flow trend is moving in the right direction.

Traders should also keep an eye on the ownership filings around Twist Bioscience, including the recent Schedule 13G/A and Form 4 activity, as a secondary gauge of how larger holders are positioning. As Tim Sykes always reminds students, “Patterns repeat, but only the prepared profit.” His broader trading philosophy is equally relevant here: As millionaire penny stock trader and teacher Tim Sykes, says, “Embrace the journey, the ups and downs; each mistake is a lesson to improve your strategy.”. With TWST, that preparation means tracking the AI partnerships, watching whether the stock can hold higher lows above recent support, and being ready to cut losses quickly if this momentum breaks. This article is for educational and research purposes only and is not investment advice.

This is stock news, not investment advice. Timothy Sykes News delivers real-time stock market news focused on key catalysts driving short-term price movements. Our content is tailored for active traders and investors seeking to capitalize on rapid price fluctuations, particularly in volatile sectors like penny stocks. Readers come to us for detailed coverage on earnings reports, mergers, FDA approvals, new contracts, and unusual trading volumes that can trigger significant short-term price action. Some users utilize our news to explain sudden stock movements, while others rely on it for diligent research into potential investment opportunities.

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Citations for Disclaimer

Barber, Brad M. and Odean, Terrance, Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors. Available at SSRN: “Day Trading for a Living?”

Barber, Brad M. and Lee, Yi-Tsung and Liu, Yu-Jane and Odean, Terrance and Zhang, Ke, Learning Fast or Slow? (May 28, 2019). Forthcoming: Review of Asset Pricing Studies, Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=2535636”

Chague, Fernando and De-Losso, Rodrigo and Giovannetti, Bruno, Day Trading for a Living? (June 11, 2020). Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=3423101”