Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Rating Lowered to "Hold" at Lifesci Capital

Key Points

• Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) has been downgraded from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" rating by Lifesci Capital, with other brokerages also adjusting their ratings and price targets for the stock.
• The biotechnology company's recent earnings report showed a loss of ($2.23) per share, significantly missing analysts’ expectations, which were projected at ($1.17).
• As of now, Merus has a consensus rating of "Hold" among analysts, with an average target price of $92.88, while 96.14% of its stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Lifesci Capital from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on MRUS. Citigroup downgraded shares of Merus from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $101.00 to $97.00 in a report on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of Merus from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $67.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Monday. UBS Group cut shares of Merus from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $72.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $97.00 price target (up previously from $95.00) on shares of Merus in a research report on Monday. Finally, Alliance Global Partners assumed coverage on shares of Merus in a research report on Monday, August 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $92.88.

Merus Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ MRUS opened at $94.15 on Monday. Merus has a 12 month low of $33.19 and a 12 month high of $94.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.12 billion, a PE ratio of -17.12 and a beta of 1.19. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.12.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($2.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.17) by ($1.06). Merus had a negative return on equity of 50.28% and a negative net margin of 685.64%.The business had revenue of $8.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.77 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Merus will post -3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merus news, COO Peter B. Silverman sold 25,000 shares of Merus stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 48,500 shares of company stock worth $2,792,500 over the last ninety days. 3.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sender Co & Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Merus during the second quarter worth $684,000. Sofinnova Investments Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merus in the second quarter worth about $21,280,000. Oxford Asset Management LLP bought a new position in shares of Merus in the second quarter worth about $627,000. Octagon Capital Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Merus by 26.3% in the second quarter. Octagon Capital Advisors LP now owns 389,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $20,461,000 after purchasing an additional 81,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perceptive Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merus by 2.6% in the second quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 708,176 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $37,250,000 after purchasing an additional 17,691 shares during the last quarter. 96.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merus Company Profile

Merus N.V., a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company, engages in the development of antibody therapeutics in the Netherlands. Its bispecific antibody candidate pipeline includes Zenocutuzumab (MCLA-128), which is in a phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer and castration-resistant prostate cancer, as well as in Phase 1/2 clinical trials for the treatment of solid tumors that harbor Neuregulin 1.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.