UBS Group AG Boosts Stock Position in CRISPR Therapeutics AG $CRSP

Key Points

• UBS Group AG raised its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics by 7.7% in Q4 to 2,524,144 shares, representing roughly a 2.65% stake valued at about $132.4 million.
• CRISPR missed quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of -$1.37 versus -$1.15 expected and revenue of $0.86M versus $4.72M expected (a 97.8% YoY revenue drop), with sell‑side forecasts calling for -$4.93 EPS for the year.
• Insiders have been net sellers, offloading 51,828 shares worth $2.58M over the past 90 days (including CEO trades), leaving company insiders with 4.30% ownership.

UBS Group AG grew its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Free Report) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,524,144 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 180,580 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned approximately 2.65% of CRISPR Therapeutics worth $132,366,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 28.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 142,696 shares of the company's stock worth $4,856,000 after acquiring an additional 31,392 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in CRISPR Therapeutics in the first quarter worth approximately $861,000. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 34.3% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 136,483 shares of the company's stock worth $4,645,000 after acquiring an additional 34,883 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. purchased a new position in CRISPR Therapeutics in the second quarter worth approximately $237,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 138.4% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 66,648 shares of the company's stock worth $3,242,000 after acquiring an additional 38,691 shares during the period. 69.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at CRISPR Therapeutics

In other news, insider Naimish Patel sold 3,150 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.26, for a total transaction of $152,019.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 13,143 shares in the company, valued at $634,281.18. This trade represents a 19.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 10,349 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.26, for a total value of $499,442.74. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 245,834 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,863,948.84. This represents a 4.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 51,828 shares of company stock worth $2,578,097 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRSP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on CRISPR Therapeutics from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Chardan Capital increased their price objective on CRISPR Therapeutics from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Truist Financial upgraded CRISPR Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on CRISPR Therapeutics from $90.00 to $89.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.53.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Up 3.2%

CRSP opened at $52.34 on Friday. CRISPR Therapeutics AG has a 52 week low of $33.03 and a 52 week high of $78.48. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.93. The firm has a market cap of $5.05 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.03 and a beta of 1.80.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The company reported ($1.37) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.15) by ($0.22). CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 26.31% and a negative net margin of 16,569.77%.The firm had revenue of $0.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.72 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($1.01) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 97.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -4.93 earnings per share for the current year.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

CRISPR Therapeutics AG is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of gene-editing therapies based on the CRISPR/Cas9 platform. The company applies its proprietary technology to modify genes in human cells, aiming to create durable treatments for a range of serious diseases. Its research and development efforts focus on both ex vivo and in vivo applications, enabling targeted correction or disruption of disease-causing genes.

Among its lead programs is CTX001, an ex vivo edited cell therapy designed to treat sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia in collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

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.