Erasca (NASDAQ:ERAS) Trading Up 5.4% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Erasca shares rose 5.4% to $16.54 in Thursday trading, although volume was approximately 95% below the average session volume.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with eight Buy ratings, two Holds, and one Sell; the stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $22.09.
• Erasca reported a quarterly loss of $0.14 per share, missing the $0.11 consensus estimate, while institutional investors own 67.78% of the company’s shares.

Shares of Erasca, Inc. (NASDAQ:ERAS - Get Free Report) were up 5.4% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $15.86 and last traded at $16.5420. Approximately 282,151 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average session volume of 5,948,134 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.70.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ERAS shares. HC Wainwright increased their target price on shares of Erasca from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Erasca in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Erasca from $12.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. HSBC set a $20.00 target price on Erasca in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Erasca from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.09.

Erasca Trading Up 3.1%

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.80. The company has a market capitalization of $5.66 billion, a PE ratio of -17.10 and a beta of 0.64.

Erasca (NASDAQ:ERAS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by ($0.03). As a group, equities research analysts predict that Erasca, Inc. will post -0.49 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Erasca

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Erasca by 594.8% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 396,202 shares of the company's stock valued at $543,000 after acquiring an additional 339,177 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Erasca by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,835,642 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,143,000 after purchasing an additional 77,790 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of Erasca by 423.3% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 244,332 shares of the company's stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 197,637 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in Erasca by 39.1% during the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 37,360 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 10,501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Erasca by 51.6% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 172,226 shares of the company's stock worth $219,000 after buying an additional 58,643 shares during the last quarter. 67.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Erasca

Erasca, Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery and development of precision medicines for patients with cancer. The company focuses on small molecule therapeutics that target critical signaling pathways involved in tumor growth and survival, with a primary emphasis on inhibitors of the MAPK pathway. Erasca's approach is designed to deliver oral, targeted therapies that address both oncogene‐driven and immuno‐oncology indications, aiming to improve outcomes for patients with unmet medical needs.

Erasca's pipeline comprises multiple development candidates, including small molecule inhibitors engineered to disrupt key nodes in cancer cell signaling.

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