Stonepine Capital Management LLC Invests $1.73 Billion in Curis, Inc. $CRIS

Stonepine Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRIS) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,312,185 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,729,292,000. Curis comprises about 0.9% of Stonepine Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Stonepine Capital Management LLC owned about 158.48% of Curis as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRIS. Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its holdings in Curis by 7.8% during the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 681,381 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,472,000 after purchasing an additional 49,554 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in shares of Curis by 17.9% in the third quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 59,140 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 8,973 shares in the last quarter. Armistice Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Curis by 8.7% in the third quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 978,190 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,624,000 after purchasing an additional 78,265 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Curis by 2,883,237.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 230,667 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 230,659 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Curis by 37.3% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 240,917 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 65,404 shares during the period. 29.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRIS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Curis in a research note on Friday, July 17th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Curis in a report on Monday, August 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Curis from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Curis from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Curis currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $43.00.

Curis Trading Down 2.6%

Curis stock opened at $1.50 on Friday. Curis, Inc. has a 1-year low of $1.40 and a 1-year high of $39.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.13 million, a PE ratio of -0.11 and a beta of 3.13. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $4.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.62.

Curis (NASDAQ:CRIS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($4.02) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($6.95) by $2.93. Curis had a negative net margin of 80.29% and a negative return on equity of 2,365.94%. Research analysts forecast that Curis, Inc. will post -24.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Curis Company Profile

Curis, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of targeted small molecule and antibody therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. The company’s research centers on exploiting key signaling pathways and tumor microenvironment interactions to develop compounds with the potential to address unmet medical needs. Curis’ proprietary pipeline includes multiple programs at various stages of clinical and preclinical development, reflecting its emphasis on innovative oncology drug candidates.

Among Curis’ lead assets is CA-4948, an oral inhibitor of interleukin-1 receptor–associated kinase 4 (IRAK4) partnered with Ikena Oncology, which is being evaluated in hematologic malignancies and solid tumors.