Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Merus in a report on Monday, May 19th. BMO Capital Markets set a $110.00 target price on Merus and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $109.00 target price on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, March 28th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Merus in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Merus from $91.00 to $89.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merus currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.64.

Merus Trading Down 1.6%

MRUS stock traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $54.71. 337,033 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 731,120. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a PE ratio of -13.39 and a beta of 1.00. Merus has a 1-year low of $33.19 and a 1-year high of $62.98.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.17) by ($0.23). Merus had a negative net margin of 506.73% and a negative return on equity of 35.99%. The company had revenue of $26.49 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.82 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Merus will post -3.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Peter B. Silverman sold 16,805 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total value of $924,275.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold 57,500 shares of company stock worth $3,086,340 in the last quarter. 4.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Merus

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merus by 2,153.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 631 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 603 shares during the period. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Merus during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in shares of Merus by 27.3% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 1,400 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Merus in the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Merus by 955.3% in the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,794 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 1,624 shares in the last quarter. 96.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Merus

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.