HC Wainwright Reiterates "Buy" Rating for CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP)

Key Points

• HC Wainwright has reissued a "Buy" rating on CRISPR Therapeutics with a price target of $80.00, suggesting a potential upside of 28.82%.
• CRISPR Therapeutics reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of ($1.29), exceeding analysts' expectations, despite having a negative net margin of 1,229.43%.
• Institutional investors hold 69.20% of the company's stock, with reported increases in stakes from multiple hedge funds including UBS Asset Management and ARK Investment Management.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by equities researchers at HC Wainwright in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $80.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 28.82% from the company's current price.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of 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 set a $82.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $86.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $81.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, CRISPR Therapeutics currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.50.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock opened at $62.10 on Tuesday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $57.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.46. CRISPR Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $30.04 and a 52-week high of $71.13. The company has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.44 and a beta of 1.81.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The company reported ($1.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $0.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.44 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.49) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 72.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that CRISPR Therapeutics will post -5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Simeon George acquired 989,812 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the director owned 1,730,179 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $90,021,213.37. The trade was a 133.69% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRSP. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 182.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,952,751 shares of the company's stock worth $66,452,000 after acquiring an additional 1,262,560 shares during the period. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd grew its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 76.9% during the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 2,764,532 shares of the company's stock worth $134,467,000 after buying an additional 1,201,600 shares in the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 13.3% during the first quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 10,165,400 shares of the company's stock worth $345,929,000 after buying an additional 1,192,336 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 98.1% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,071,883 shares of the company's stock worth $100,789,000 after buying an additional 1,025,979 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 35.6% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,270,596 shares of the company's stock worth $159,082,000 after buying an additional 859,334 shares in the last quarter. 69.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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