Capricor Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAPR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Capricor Therapeutics has a Moderate Buy consensus from 10 analysts, with nine buy ratings and one sell rating. The average 1-year target price is about $46.09, above the stock’s recent trading level.
• Several firms recently raised their outlooks, including Piper Sandler, B. Riley Financial, Cantor Fitzgerald, and HC Wainwright, with target prices ranging from $58 to $63. One outlier, Wall Street Zen, downgraded the stock to sell earlier this year.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of ($0.62) EPS, missing estimates, while insiders have been selling shares and hedge funds have been adding positions. Capricor remains a clinical-stage biotech focused on CAP-1002 for Duchenne muscular dystrophy and other indications.

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAPR - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $46.0909.

Several research firms recently commented on CAPR. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $58.00 target price (up from $45.00) on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, March 13th. B. Riley Financial increased their target price on shares of Capricor Therapeutics from $50.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $62.00 price target on shares of Capricor Therapeutics and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Capricor Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th.

Capricor Therapeutics Price Performance

CAPR stock opened at $30.38 on Friday. Capricor Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $4.30 and a 12 month high of $40.37. The firm has a market cap of $1.76 billion, a PE ratio of -13.44 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.34.

Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.62) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.51) by ($0.11). As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Capricor Therapeutics will post 0.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Capricor Therapeutics

In related news, CFO Anthony Bergmann sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.70, for a total value of $792,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 8,223 shares in the company, valued at approximately $260,669.10. This represents a 75.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Karimah Es Sabar sold 7,529 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $240,928.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $240,928. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 172,529 shares of company stock valued at $5,302,440. 9.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Capricor Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. KBC Group NV purchased a new stake in shares of Capricor Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Swiss National Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Capricor Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,943,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Capricor Therapeutics by 10.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 130,730 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,974,000 after acquiring an additional 12,366 shares in the last quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Capricor Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $304,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new position in Capricor Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $250,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.68% of the company's stock.

About Capricor Therapeutics

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development of cell and exosome-based therapeutics for cardiovascular and rare diseases. Headquartered in Beverly Hills, California, the company leverages proprietary cardiosphere-derived cell (CDC) technology to address conditions characterized by inflammation, fibrosis, and tissue degeneration. Since its founding, Capricor has advanced its lead candidate through multiple clinical trials and has built a pipeline that spans both cell therapy and extracellular vesicle (exosome) platforms.

The company's leading product candidate, CAP-1002, comprises allogeneic CDCs and is being evaluated in indications such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and COVID-19-related heart injury.

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