CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Stock Price Up 2.8% – Still a Buy?

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)’s stock price was up 2.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $43.48 and last traded at $43.16. Approximately 244,018 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 2,193,486 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.99.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com raised CRISPR Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $66.00 to $57.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $98.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen raised CRISPR Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $35.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.11.

CRISPR Therapeutics Trading Up 0.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $3.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.64 and a beta of 1.77. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.63.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported ($0.44) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.16 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CRISPR Therapeutics news, COO Julianne Bruno sold 1,198 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.42, for a total transaction of $50,819.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,263 shares in the company, valued at $350,516.46. The trade was a 12.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 9,973 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.42, for a total transaction of $423,054.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 180,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,673,353.80. This represents a 5.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 32,381 shares of company stock valued at $1,608,243. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of CRISPR Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP lifted its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in CRISPR Therapeutics in the third quarter worth $40,000. 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.