CRISPR Therapeutics Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:CRSP)

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders acquired 10,886 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 49% compared to the average volume of 7,308 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on CRSP shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on CRISPR Therapeutics from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $86.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Chardan Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $82.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $71.75.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of CRSP traded down $1.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $59.03. 4,250,575 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,937,425. CRISPR Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $30.04 and a 1-year high of $63.68. The stock has a market cap of $5.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.06 and a beta of 1.82. The stock's fifty day moving average is $41.72 and its 200 day moving average is $41.04.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Naimish Patel sold 3,932 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.94, for a total transaction of $141,316.08. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $218,083.92. The trade was a 39.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of CRISPR Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. ARK Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 13.3% in the 1st 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. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,743,523 shares of the company's stock worth $344,145,000 after acquiring an additional 816,789 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,811,708 shares of the company's stock worth $150,029,000 after acquiring an additional 1,074,238 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 182.9% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,952,751 shares of the company's stock worth $66,452,000 after acquiring an additional 1,262,560 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,769,709 shares of the company's stock worth $60,223,000 after buying an additional 33,711 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.