CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Trading 1.2% Higher

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report)'s share price traded up 1.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $55.34 and last traded at $54.43. 258,312 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 1,766,410 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRSP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TheStreet raised shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from a "d+" rating to a "c" rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Chardan Capital upped their price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $76.29.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company's 50 day moving average price is $68.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.09. The company has a market cap of $4.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -28.10 and a beta of 1.80.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.95. The business had revenue of $201.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $148.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.41) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3253.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -6.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.36, for a total transaction of $1,607,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 187,377 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,057,615.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other CRISPR Therapeutics news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.36, for a total value of $1,607,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 187,377 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,057,615.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel James R. Kasinger sold 2,801 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.26, for a total transaction of $219,206.26. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 60,070 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,701,078.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 83,992 shares of company stock valued at $6,132,335. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 1,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC now owns 550 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 80.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 582 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 257.6% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 608 shares of the company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company's stock.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

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.