Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Cerus from “hold” to “buy,” though the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold” with an average price target of $5.25.
• Cerus reported quarterly revenue of $63.3 million and adjusted EPS of $(0.01), in line with analyst expectations; analysts project a $(0.04) loss per share for the full fiscal year.
• The stock opened at $2.59, with a 52-week range of $1.17 to $3.47. Institutional investors own 78.37% of Cerus, while insiders sold shares primarily to cover tax withholding obligations.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

CERS has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Cerus in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Freedom Broker began coverage on shares of Cerus in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $6.50 price target on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cerus currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $5.25.

Cerus Stock Performance

NASDAQ CERS opened at $2.59 on Friday. Cerus has a 1-year low of $1.17 and a 1-year high of $3.47. The company has a market capitalization of $521.94 million, a P/E ratio of -86.33 and a beta of 1.80. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $2.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01). The company had revenue of $63.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.90 million. Cerus had a negative return on equity of 10.19% and a negative net margin of 3.06%. Sell-side analysts expect that Cerus will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cerus news, COO Vivek Jayaraman sold 42,359 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.94, for a total transaction of $124,535.46. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 1,694,348 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,981,383.12. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Kevin Green sold 33,676 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.94, for a total value of $99,007.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,062,188 shares in the company, valued at $3,122,832.72. This trade represents a 3.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 252,737 shares of company stock worth $737,292 in the last three months. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cerus

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CERS. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in Cerus during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in Cerus during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus in the first quarter worth $32,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus in the first quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cerus in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.37% of the company's stock.

About Cerus

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company dedicated to enhancing the safety of blood transfusions worldwide. Its flagship offering, the INTERCEPT Blood System, employs pathogen reduction technology designed to inactivate a broad spectrum of viruses, bacteria, and parasites in donated platelets and plasma. This approach aims to mitigate the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections and improve blood component safety for patients.

The INTERCEPT platform integrates seamlessly into existing blood center workflows, providing a one-step treatment process for collected blood products.

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