CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Shares Up 7.1% - Still a Buy?

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) was up 7.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $51.52 and last traded at $50.88. Approximately 2,564,936 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 38% from the average daily volume of 1,860,845 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on CRSP shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of CRISPR Therapeutics to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $56.00 to $42.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Chardan Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $86.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $71.75.

CRISPR Therapeutics Trading Up 2.4%

The company has a market cap of $4.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.76 and a beta of 1.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $39.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.50.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported ($1.58) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.27) by ($0.31). CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 1,023.64% and a negative return on equity of 20.08%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 71.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted ($1.43) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.16 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at CRISPR Therapeutics

In other news, insider Naimish Patel sold 3,932 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.94, for a total value of $141,316.08. Following the transaction, the insider owned 6,068 shares in the company, valued at $218,083.92. This represents a 39.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 4.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 272.4% in the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 1,337 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company's stock.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

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.