Blair William & Co. IL Has $2.32 Million Stake in CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)

Key Points

• Blair William & Co. IL reduced its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics AG by 40.4%, now holding 68,217 shares valued at $2.32 million, according to a recent SEC filing.
• Institutional investors collectively own 69.20% of CRISPR Therapeutics, with notable increases in positions by ARK Investment Management and Baker BROS. Advisors in recent quarters.
• Recent analyst ratings vary, with a consensus price target of $71.60 and multiple firms reaffirming buy ratings, while some have downgraded their outlook.

Blair William & Co. IL lowered its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Free Report) by 40.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,217 shares of the company's stock after selling 46,183 shares during the quarter. Blair William & Co. IL owned about 0.08% of CRISPR Therapeutics worth $2,321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CRSP. ARK Investment Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $345,929,000 after purchasing an additional 1,192,336 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its stake 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 valued at $150,029,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074,238 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake 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 valued at $344,145,000 after purchasing an additional 816,789 shares during the period. Baker BROS. Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 55.1% in the 4th quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP now owns 1,308,011 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,483,000 after purchasing an additional 464,936 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,211,509 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,685,000 after purchasing an additional 129,746 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $81.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on CRISPR Therapeutics from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on CRISPR Therapeutics from $79.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded CRISPR Therapeutics to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Chardan Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $71.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at CRISPR Therapeutics

In related news, Director Simeon George purchased 989,812 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was bought 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 approximately $90,021,213.37. This represents a 133.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 $218,083.92. This trade represents a 39.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

CRISPR Therapeutics Price Performance

CRSP traded up $1.19 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $56.60. 2,174,637 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,579,855. CRISPR Therapeutics AG has a twelve month low of $30.04 and a twelve month high of $71.13. The company has a market cap of $5.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.42 and a beta of 1.80. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $51.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.00.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The company reported ($1.29) EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.44 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($1.49) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 72.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

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.