Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 975,218 Shares of Cerus Corporation $CERS

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group cut its Cerus stake by 17.2%, selling 975,218 shares in Q4 and now holds 4,709,959 shares (about 2.45% of the company, valued at ~$9.7M).
• Company insiders — including the CFO and CEO who sold 127,544 and 447,757 shares respectively on March 12 — have sold 1,194,282 shares (~$2.11M) over the past 90 days, though insiders still own 5.60% of the stock.
• Shares traded near $2.08 (up ~4%); Cerus reported quarterly EPS of ($0.01) in line with estimates with revenue beating expectations, but remains unprofitable and carries a broker consensus rating of "Reduce".

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ:CERS - Free Report) by 17.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,709,959 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 975,218 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 2.45% of Cerus worth $9,703,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cerus by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 81,556 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 6,094 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Cerus by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 93,343 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $148,000 after purchasing an additional 7,355 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in Cerus by 3.4% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 231,721 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $368,000 after purchasing an additional 7,663 shares during the last quarter. Bouvel Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in Cerus by 2.1% in the third quarter. Bouvel Investment Partners LLC now owns 496,189 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $789,000 after purchasing an additional 10,126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its position in Cerus by 9.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 120,906 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $192,000 after buying an additional 10,252 shares during the period. 78.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cerus Trading Up 4.0%

Shares of CERS opened at $2.08 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $399.71 million, a P/E ratio of -26.00 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $2.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1.95. Cerus Corporation has a twelve month low of $1.15 and a twelve month high of $2.95.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01). The business had revenue of $64.58 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.31 million. Cerus had a negative net margin of 7.58% and a negative return on equity of 26.09%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Cerus Corporation will post -0.08 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CERS. Wall Street Zen cut Cerus from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Cerus in a report on Monday, January 12th. Zacks Research cut Cerus from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Cerus in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce".

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cerus news, CFO Kevin Dennis Green sold 127,544 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.66, for a total transaction of $211,723.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,040,551 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,727,314.66. This represents a 10.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO William Mariner Greenman sold 447,757 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.66, for a total value of $743,276.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 4,998,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,297,498.38. This trade represents a 8.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 1,194,282 shares of company stock valued at $2,106,290 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.60% of the company's stock.

About Cerus

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company dedicated to enhancing the safety of blood transfusions worldwide. Its flagship offering, the INTERCEPT Blood System, employs pathogen reduction technology designed to inactivate a broad spectrum of viruses, bacteria, and parasites in donated platelets and plasma. This approach aims to mitigate the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections and improve blood component safety for patients.

The INTERCEPT platform integrates seamlessly into existing blood center workflows, providing a one-step treatment process for collected blood products.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.