CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Trading 4.7% Higher – Here’s What Happened

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) shares traded up 4.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $46.73 and last traded at $46.50. 495,549 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 2,338,765 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on CRISPR Therapeutics from $66.00 to $57.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on CRISPR Therapeutics from $53.00 to $49.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $86.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Chardan Capital reduced their price target on CRISPR Therapeutics from $94.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CRISPR Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.40.

CRISPR Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a PE ratio of -10.05 and a beta of 1.67. The business has a 50-day moving average of $42.49 and a 200 day moving average of $45.95.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported ($0.44) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.15) by $0.71. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 18.46% and a negative net margin of 981.54%. On average, equities analysts predict that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at CRISPR Therapeutics

In related news, Director John Greene purchased 7,000 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $44.85 per share, for a total transaction of $313,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $313,950. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 18,360 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.20, for a total value of $1,013,472.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 171,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,473,037.60. The trade was a 9.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of CRISPR Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the third quarter worth about $43,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Western Pacific Wealth Management LP grew its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

CRISPR Therapeutics is a gene-editing company focused on developing transformative gene-based medicines for serious diseases using its proprietary CRISPR/Cas9 platform. CRISPR/Cas9 is a revolutionary gene-editing technology that allows for precise, directed changes to genomic DNA. CRISPR Therapeutics has established a portfolio of therapeutic programs across a broad range of disease areas including hemoglobinopathies, oncology, regenerative medicine and rare diseases.