CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Trading 11.2% Higher – Still a Buy?

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)’s share price was up 11.2% on Monday . The company traded as high as $57.47 and last traded at $57.39. Approximately 889,301 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average daily volume of 1,451,765 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.62.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CRSP shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on CRISPR Therapeutics from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $84.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays decreased their target price on CRISPR Therapeutics from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.94.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.16.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($1.01) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.42) by $0.41. The company had revenue of $0.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.65 million. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 12.15% and a negative net margin of 118.13%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($1.41) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CRISPR Therapeutics news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 4,293 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.28, for a total transaction of $198,680.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,484,271.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, General Counsel James R. Kasinger sold 1,089 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.28, for a total transaction of $50,398.92. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 62,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,896,989.16. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 4,293 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.28, for a total value of $198,680.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,484,271.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CRSP. SFE Investment Counsel boosted its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. SFE Investment Counsel now owns 5,846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,606 shares of the company’s stock worth $249,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the period. Orion Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 44.0% in the first quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC now owns 720 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 35.0% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 95.5% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.