CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive on CRISPR Therapeutics, with 18 analysts assigning it an average rating of “Moderate Buy.” The consensus 12-month price target is about $66.06.
• The stock has seen mixed recent analyst updates, including higher price targets from Citigroup, Piper Sandler, and Needham, while TD Cowen and Wall Street Zen moved to more cautious ratings.
• CRISPR Therapeutics continues to post losses and minimal revenue, reporting EPS of -$1.28 in its latest quarter on revenue of just $1.46 million, even as institutional ownership remains high at 69.2%.

Shares of CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eighteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $66.0625.

CRSP has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (up from $105.00) on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th.

CRISPR Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of CRSP opened at $54.01 on Tuesday. CRISPR Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $34.87 and a fifty-two week high of $78.48. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $52.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.13. The company has a market cap of $5.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.68 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a quick ratio of 17.96, a current ratio of 17.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 25.66% and a negative net margin of 13,856.54%.The business had revenue of $1.46 million for the quarter. On average, research analysts forecast that CRISPR Therapeutics will post -5.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at CRISPR Therapeutics

In other CRISPR Therapeutics news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 10,020 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.78, for a total value of $468,735.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 255,501 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,952,336.78. This represents a 3.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Naimish Patel sold 3,150 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.26, for a total transaction of $152,019.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 13,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $634,281.18. This represents a 19.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 51,828 shares of company stock valued at $2,578,097. Insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 836.7% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 562 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 196.9% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 576 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. grew its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 71.4% in the 3rd quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 504 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. 69.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CRISPR Therapeutics

CRISPR Therapeutics AG is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of gene-editing therapies based on the CRISPR/Cas9 platform. The company applies its proprietary technology to modify genes in human cells, aiming to create durable treatments for a range of serious diseases. Its research and development efforts focus on both ex vivo and in vivo applications, enabling targeted correction or disruption of disease-causing genes.

Among its lead programs is CTX001, an ex vivo edited cell therapy designed to treat sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia in collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

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