CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Shares Up 3.7% – Should You Buy?

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)’s share price was up 3.7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $42.16 and last traded at $41.99. Approximately 517,363 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 1,902,664 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.49.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on CRSP shares. HC Wainwright assumed coverage on CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com upgraded CRISPR Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Barclays reduced 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. Bank of America cut their price objective on CRISPR Therapeutics from $98.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $53.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $77.59.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Down 2.2 %

The company has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -14.03 and a beta of 1.67. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $42.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.78.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($1.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.42) by $0.41. The business had revenue of $0.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 period in the previous year, the company posted ($1.41) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at CRISPR Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.62, for a total value of $1,668,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 196,540 shares in the company, valued at $10,931,554.80. This represents a 13.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CRISPR Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP raised its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 100.0% in the 4th 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 period. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new position in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth $70,000. Institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

About CRISPR Therapeutics

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.