CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• CRISPR Therapeutics AG has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from eighteen brokerages, with an average twelve-month target price of $71.50.
• The company reported quarterly earnings per share of ($1.29), surpassing the consensus estimate, but revenue was significantly below expectations at $0.89 million.
• Notable insider trading activity includes Director Simeon George purchasing 989,812 shares at an average cost of $52.03 per share, increasing his holdings by 133.69%.

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $71.50.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CRSP. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Friday, June 27th. Chardan Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $82.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Zacks Research upgraded CRISPR Therapeutics from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Barclays raised their target price on CRISPR Therapeutics from $42.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CRSP opened at $61.67 on Monday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $57.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.97. The firm has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.36 and a beta of 1.81. CRISPR Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $30.04 and a 52-week high of $71.13.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported ($1.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.18. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 20.05% and a negative net margin of 1,229.43%.The business had revenue of $0.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.44 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($1.49) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 72.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that CRISPR Therapeutics will post -5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CRISPR Therapeutics news, Director Simeon George purchased 989,812 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $52.03 per share, for a total transaction of $51,499,918.36. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 1,730,179 shares of the company's stock, valued at $90,021,213.37. The trade was a 133.69% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of CRISPR Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. ARK Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 13.3% during the first quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 10,165,400 shares of the company's stock worth $345,929,000 after acquiring an additional 1,192,336 shares during the period. B & T Capital Management DBA Alpha Capital Management bought a new stake in CRISPR Therapeutics during the first quarter worth $416,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 14.3% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 39,189 shares of the company's stock worth $1,334,000 after acquiring an additional 4,914 shares during the period. Green Alpha Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 132.9% during the first quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 57,361 shares of the company's stock worth $1,952,000 after acquiring an additional 32,732 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 1.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,769,709 shares of the company's stock worth $60,223,000 after acquiring an additional 33,711 shares during the period. 69.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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