Crescent Biopharma (NASDAQ:CBIO) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Guggenheim

Crescent Biopharma (NASDAQ:CBIO) was upgraded by stock analysts at Guggenheim to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $35.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Guggenheim’s target price suggests a potential upside of 155.10% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on CBIO. Stifel Nicolaus set a $32.00 price target on Crescent Biopharma in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e-)” rating on shares of Crescent Biopharma in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Crescent Biopharma from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $27.83.

Crescent Biopharma Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:CBIO opened at $13.72 on Wednesday. Crescent Biopharma has a 12 month low of $9.81 and a 12 month high of $37.00. The company has a market capitalization of $190.57 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.65 and a beta of 1.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $12.84 and its 200 day moving average is $12.86.

Crescent Biopharma (NASDAQ:CBIO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.27) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.01) by ($0.26). As a group, equities analysts forecast that Crescent Biopharma will post -0.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Fairmount Funds Management Llc bought 1,360,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $13.41 per share, with a total value of $18,237,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,747,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,848,883.06. This trade represents a 97.99% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 4.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Crescent Biopharma

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CBIO. Citadel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Crescent Biopharma during the third quarter valued at $304,000. Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Crescent Biopharma in the 3rd quarter valued at about $337,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Crescent Biopharma by 279.1% in the 3rd quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 102,714 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,221,000 after purchasing an additional 75,618 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Crescent Biopharma during the third quarter valued at approximately $7,822,000. Finally, Soleus Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Crescent Biopharma during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,456,000. Institutional investors own 75.19% of the company’s stock.

About Crescent Biopharma

Crescent Biopharma, Inc (NASDAQ: CBIO) is a clinical?stage immuno?oncology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapies for patients with solid tumors. The company’s research strategy centers on combination approaches that enhance anti?tumor immune responses by simultaneously targeting multiple pathways implicated in immune evasion and tumor growth.

The company’s lead candidate, CPB-201, is a bifunctional fusion protein designed to block programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) while neutralizing transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-?), with the goal of restoring T-cell activity and reducing tumor fibrosis.