Mereo BioPharma Group Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:MREO)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: traders bought 4,381 call options on MREO on Wednesday, a 61% increase over the typical daily call volume, signaling heightened speculative interest in the stock.
• Equity trading surged — MREO traded 28.2 million shares (vs. average 3.06 million) and closed at $0.34, with a market cap of about $54.7 million and a negative PE, underscoring its microcap volatility.
• Analysts are mixed with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a $4.40 average price target, while institutional investors have been adding positions and now own roughly 62.83% of the company.

Mereo BioPharma Group plc - Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:MREO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders acquired 4,381 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 61% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,719 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MREO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Lifesci Capital cut shares of Mereo BioPharma Group from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. BTIG Research cut their target price on Mereo BioPharma Group from $6.00 to $1.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Mereo BioPharma Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $1.00 price objective on Mereo BioPharma Group in a research report on Monday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Mereo BioPharma Group in a research report on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $4.40.

Mereo BioPharma Group Stock Performance

MREO traded down $0.03 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $0.34. The stock had a trading volume of 28,198,071 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,062,518. The company has a market capitalization of $54.74 million, a PE ratio of -5.73 and a beta of 0.45. Mereo BioPharma Group has a twelve month low of $0.20 and a twelve month high of $3.84. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1.96.

Mereo BioPharma Group (NASDAQ:MREO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mereo BioPharma Group will post -0.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mereo BioPharma Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Mereo BioPharma Group by 53.4% in the first quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 7,819,863 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,595,000 after acquiring an additional 2,722,084 shares during the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc increased its stake in Mereo BioPharma Group by 82.9% during the third quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 5,538,699 shares of the company's stock worth $11,410,000 after purchasing an additional 2,509,827 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC purchased a new stake in Mereo BioPharma Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,928,000. Blue Owl Capital Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Mereo BioPharma Group in the third quarter valued at $2,575,000. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mereo BioPharma Group by 90.5% in the 3rd quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,732,724 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,569,000 after buying an additional 823,084 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.83% of the company's stock.

Mereo BioPharma Group Company Profile

Mereo BioPharma Group plc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for rare diseases, oncology and severe respiratory conditions. The company pursues an asset‐centric model, in which it in-licenses or acquires clinical-stage small molecules and monoclonal antibodies with established safety profiles. By concentrating resources on a select number of programs, Mereo aims to accelerate proof-of-concept studies and maximize the potential value of each therapeutic candidate.

Mereo's pipeline includes investigational therapies for skeletal disorders, such as setrusumab (BPS-804) for osteogenesis imperfecta, and treatments for acute and chronic respiratory diseases.

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