Geron Corporation $GERN Stock: Candriam S.C.A. Grows Position

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its Geron stake by 42.8% in the third quarter, adding about 2.39 million shares to hold nearly 8 million shares, or 1.24% of the company.
• Institutional investors own 73.71% of Geron, and several other firms also reported increasing their holdings.
• Analyst views are mixed: the stock has an average “Hold” rating and a $3.75 average price target, with three Buy, two Hold, and one Sell rating.

Candriam S.C.A. increased its position in Geron Corporation (NASDAQ:GERN - Free Report) by 42.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,982,968 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,393,786 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. owned about 1.24% of Geron worth $9,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Geron by 20.5% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 39,519 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 6,713 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in Geron by 23.0% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 41,891 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 7,840 shares during the last quarter. Nvest Financial LLC boosted its position in Geron by 1.7% in the second quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 517,150 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $662,000 after purchasing an additional 8,676 shares during the last quarter. GTS Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Geron by 71.6% during the 2nd quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 23,772 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 9,921 shares during the period. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Geron by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 117,226 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 15,128 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.71% of the company's stock.

Geron Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ:GERN opened at $1.00 on Tuesday. Geron Corporation has a one year low of $0.84 and a one year high of $2.01. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $1.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $640.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.46 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 6.91 and a quick ratio of 5.16.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GERN has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Geron from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (e+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wedbush dropped their price objective on shares of Geron to $5.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on shares of Geron from $4.00 to $2.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $3.75.

Geron Profile

Geron Corporation NASDAQ: GERN is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing treatments for blood cancers and other serious hematologic diseases. Its lead product, Rytelo (imetelstat), is a telomerase inhibitor designed to target malignant blood-forming cells.

Rytelo is approved in the United States for adults with lower-risk myelodysplastic syndromes who have transfusion-dependent anemia requiring regular red blood cell transfusions and have not responded adequately to, or are not eligible for, erythropoiesis-stimulating agents.

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