Avoro Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS)

Avoro Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Free Report) by 56.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,125,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 770,000 shares during the quarter. Merus makes up about 1.3% of Avoro Capital Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC owned 3.10% of Merus worth $89,356,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in shares of Merus by 27.3% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 1,400 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Merus during the fourth quarter worth about $76,000. MML Investors Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merus in the 3rd quarter valued at about $206,000. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Merus in the 3rd quarter valued at about $358,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Merus in the 4th quarter worth approximately $347,000. 96.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRUS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Merus in a research report on Friday, February 7th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $91.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Merus in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $84.00 price objective for the company. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, February 28th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $109.00 price target on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on Merus from $73.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $85.31.

Merus Price Performance

Shares of MRUS traded down $0.79 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $43.57. 479,065 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 715,979. The company has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.03 and a beta of 1.02. Merus has a twelve month low of $33.19 and a twelve month high of $61.61. The business's 50-day moving average price is $44.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.78.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.89) by $0.48. The company had revenue of $9.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.57 million. Merus had a negative return on equity of 38.89% and a negative net margin of 680.61%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merus will post -3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merus 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.