Benjamin Edwards Inc. Buys 5,853 Shares of CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics AG by 13% in Q1, now holding 50,915 shares valued at approximately $1.73 million.
• Insider Naimish Patel sold 3,932 shares, reflecting a 39.32% decrease in ownership, while Director Simeon George significantly increased his position by purchasing nearly 1 million shares.
• Analyst reports show a positive outlook for CRISPR Therapeutics, with multiple firms raising their price targets, including HC Wainwright, which increased its target from $65 to $80.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Free Report) by 13.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 50,915 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 5,853 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of CRISPR Therapeutics worth $1,733,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SFE Investment Counsel boosted its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 5.8% in the first quarter. SFE Investment Counsel now owns 6,507 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,309 shares of the company's stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. boosted its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 22.0% in the 1st quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. now owns 2,186 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,725 shares of the company's stock worth $195,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD. grew its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD. now owns 27,698 shares of the company's stock worth $1,090,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CRISPR Therapeutics 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 owned 6,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $218,083.92. This represents a 39.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Simeon George bought 989,812 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $52.03 per share, with a total value of $51,499,918.36. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on CRISPR Therapeutics from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Chardan Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $86.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright upped their target price on CRISPR Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $71.60.

CRISPR Therapeutics Trading Up 1.5%

NASDAQ CRSP traded up $0.91 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $59.73. 3,060,144 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,828,408. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $53.49 and a 200-day moving average of $44.44. The stock has a market cap of $5.43 billion, a PE ratio of -11.00 and a beta of 1.80. CRISPR Therapeutics AG has a one year low of $30.04 and a one year high of $71.13.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $0.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.44 million. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 1,229.43% and a negative return on equity of 20.05%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 72.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($1.49) EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.16 EPS for the current year.

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.