Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR)

Capricor Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:CAPR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 6,025 call options on the company. This is an increase of 44% compared to the average volume of 4,190 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on CAPR. Wall Street Zen cut Capricor Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $77.00 target price on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Roth Capital began coverage on Capricor Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $31.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $35.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Capricor Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Capricor Therapeutics by 44.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,276,784 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $31,420,000 after purchasing an additional 700,243 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Capricor Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,056,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Capricor Therapeutics by 37.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 879,468 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $12,139,000 after acquiring an additional 241,279 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its holdings in Capricor Therapeutics by 15.8% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 729,318 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $6,921,000 after acquiring an additional 99,384 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altium Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Capricor Therapeutics by 150.5% in the 4th quarter. Altium Capital Management LLC now owns 714,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $9,853,000 after acquiring an additional 429,000 shares during the last quarter. 21.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Capricor Therapeutics Trading Up 6.8%

Capricor Therapeutics stock traded up $0.84 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $13.18. 2,768,846 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,771,044. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $10.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.03. The company has a market cap of $602.02 million, a PE ratio of -12.43 and a beta of 0.85. Capricor Therapeutics has a one year low of $3.52 and a one year high of $23.40.

Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.53) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.33) by ($0.20). Capricor Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 146.86% and a negative return on equity of 112.95%. The business had revenue of $2.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.16 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.31) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Capricor Therapeutics will post -1.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Capricor Therapeutics

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: CAPR is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of first-in-class biological therapeutics for the treatment of rare disorders. Capricor's lead candidate, CAP-1002, is an allogeneic cell therapy that is currently in clinical development for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.