Caris Life Sciences (NASDAQ:CAI) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Key Points

• Caris Life Sciences shares jumped 15.4%, opening at $19.00 versus a prior close of $16.45 and later trading around $19.43.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with seven Buy ratings, four Holds and one Sell; the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with a $26.22 price target.
• The company authorized a $100 million share-repurchase program, while directors made substantial stock purchases and insiders collectively own 50% of the shares.

Caris Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAI - Get Free Report) shares gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $16.45, but opened at $19.00. Caris Life Sciences shares last traded at $19.4260, with a volume of 1,559,570 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. New Street Research started coverage on Caris Life Sciences in a research note on Friday, May 8th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on Caris Life Sciences from $35.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Caris Life Sciences from $35.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Caris Life Sciences in a report on Friday, April 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $21.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Caris Life Sciences from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $26.22.

Caris Life Sciences Stock Up 15.4%

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.49 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $17.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.78. The company has a current ratio of 7.05, a quick ratio of 6.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Caris Life Sciences declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Monday, June 8th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caris Life Sciences news, Director Jon Halbert purchased 68,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.56 per share, with a total value of $990,080.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 704,598 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,258,946.88. This represents a 10.68% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeff L. Vacirca purchased 31,050 shares of Caris Life Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $16.15 per share, for a total transaction of $501,457.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 49,671 shares in the company, valued at $802,186.65. This represents a 166.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 50.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caris Life Sciences

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CAI. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Caris Life Sciences by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,205,959 shares of the company's stock valued at $248,377,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180,200 shares during the last quarter. Braidwell LP raised its position in Caris Life Sciences by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 7,816,142 shares of the company's stock worth $210,880,000 after purchasing an additional 500,000 shares during the last quarter. PointState Capital LP lifted its holdings in Caris Life Sciences by 73.0% during the 4th quarter. PointState Capital LP now owns 6,718,707 shares of the company's stock worth $181,271,000 after buying an additional 2,834,986 shares in the last quarter. Orbimed Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Caris Life Sciences by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Orbimed Advisors LLC now owns 3,116,011 shares of the company's stock worth $84,070,000 after buying an additional 81,153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Caris Life Sciences by 185.0% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,445,281 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,974,000 after buying an additional 1,587,176 shares during the last quarter.

About Caris Life Sciences

Caris Life Sciences NASDAQ: CAI is a molecular science company focused on advancing precision medicine in oncology. The company develops and delivers comprehensive molecular profiling services designed to identify actionable biomarkers across DNA, RNA and protein modalities. Its clinical services are intended to support oncologists in treatment decision-making by matching patients to targeted therapies, immunotherapies and relevant clinical trials based on tumor biology.

Caris provides laboratory-based diagnostic testing and related interpretive reports, combining high-throughput sequencing and other molecular technologies with bioinformatic analysis.

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