CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Earns Overweight Rating from Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has initiated coverage on CRISPR Therapeutics with an "overweight" rating and a price target of $70.00, indicating a potential upside of 18.5% from the stock's previous close.
• The company recently reported earnings of ($1.29) per share, exceeding estimates by $0.18, but with revenues significantly below projections at $0.89 million.
• Insider buying is notable as Director Simeon George purchased nearly 1 million shares at an average price of $52.03, representing a 133.69% increase in ownership.

Investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set an "overweight" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target suggests a potential upside of 18.50% from the company's previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $81.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $79.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $42.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.50.

CRISPR Therapeutics Trading Down 3.5%

NASDAQ CRSP opened at $59.07 on Thursday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $56.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.04. CRISPR Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $30.04 and a 12-month high of $71.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.88 and a beta of 1.81.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last released 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 net margin of 1,229.43% and a negative return on equity of 20.05%. The business had revenue of $0.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.44 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.49) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 72.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that CRISPR Therapeutics will post -5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at CRISPR Therapeutics

In related news, Director Simeon George purchased 989,812 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $52.03 per share, for a total transaction of $51,499,918.36. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,730,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,021,213.37. This trade represents a 133.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 205,173 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,072,000 after acquiring an additional 18,412 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 65.0% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 8,133 shares of the company's stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 3,205 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new stake in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $239,000. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 71.1% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 306,272 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,055,000 after acquiring an additional 127,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 50.4% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 84,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,338,000 after acquiring an additional 28,400 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company's stock.

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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