Richard Benjamin Sells 61,233 Shares of Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) Stock

Key Points

• Insider sale: Cerus insider Richard Benjamin sold 61,233 shares on March 5 at an average price of $2.06, reducing his position by 6.09% to 943,762 shares valued at about $1.94 million.
• Financials: Cerus reported Q results with EPS of ($0.01) in line with estimates and revenue of $64.58 million (beating expectations), but the company remains unprofitable with a -7.58% net margin and -26.09% return on equity.
• Market and sentiment: Shares traded near $1.93 (1‑year range $1.12–$2.96) with a $370.9M market cap; the consensus rating is Hold after mixed analyst coverage, and institutional investors/hedge funds own about 78.37% of the stock.

Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ:CERS - Get Free Report) insider Richard Benjamin sold 61,233 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.06, for a total value of $126,139.98. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 943,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,944,149.72. This represents a 6.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Cerus Price Performance

NASDAQ:CERS remained flat at $1.93 during midday trading on Monday. 2,029,960 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,640,307. Cerus Corporation has a one year low of $1.12 and a one year high of $2.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.73. The company has a market capitalization of $370.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -24.13 and a beta of 1.51. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $2.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.86.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.01). The business had revenue of $64.58 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $59.31 million. Cerus had a negative net margin of 7.58% and a negative return on equity of 26.09%. As a group, analysts forecast that Cerus Corporation will post -0.08 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CERS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Cerus from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Cerus in a research note on Monday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cerus

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CERS. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in shares of Cerus during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cerus during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Cerus by 68.4% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 18,712 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 7,603 shares during the period. Bingham Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Cerus in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in Cerus in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.37% of the company's stock.

About Cerus

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company dedicated to enhancing the safety of blood transfusions worldwide. Its flagship offering, the INTERCEPT Blood System, employs pathogen reduction technology designed to inactivate a broad spectrum of viruses, bacteria, and parasites in donated platelets and plasma. This approach aims to mitigate the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections and improve blood component safety for patients.

The INTERCEPT platform integrates seamlessly into existing blood center workflows, providing a one-step treatment process for collected blood products.

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