Stock Traders Buy High Volume of CRISPR Therapeutics Call Options (NASDAQ:CRSP)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Traders bought 6,090 CRISPR Therapeutics call options on Thursday, about 66% above the stock’s average daily call volume.
• Insider selling: CEO Samarth Kulkarni and General Counsel James R. Kasinger both sold shares recently, and insiders have sold 46,535 shares worth about $2.31 million over the last 90 days.
• Shares rose and analysts remain mostly positive: CRSP climbed 12.5% to $58.62, while Wall Street’s consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average target price of $65.47.

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders bought 6,090 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 66% compared to the average daily volume of 3,675 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at CRISPR Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 10,349 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.26, for a total transaction of $499,442.74. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 245,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,863,948.84. This represents a 4.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel James R. Kasinger sold 3,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.26, for a total transaction of $166,497.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 91,240 shares in the company, valued at $4,403,242.40. This represents a 3.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 46,535 shares of company stock valued at $2,311,300 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 836.7% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 562 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 502 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 196.9% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 576 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the period. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 71.4% during the third quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 504 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. 69.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CRSP. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $110.00 target price (up from $105.00) on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Chardan Capital upped their target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and set a $76.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, May 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, CRISPR Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.47.

CRISPR Therapeutics Trading Up 12.5%

CRISPR Therapeutics stock traded up $6.54 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $58.62. The stock had a trading volume of 1,365,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,837,382. The company has a quick ratio of 17.96, a current ratio of 17.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. CRISPR Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $37.02 and a 52-week high of $78.48. The firm has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.39 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a fifty day moving average of $51.73 and a 200 day moving average of $53.12.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 25.66% and a negative net margin of 13,856.54%.The firm had revenue of $1.46 million during the quarter. On average, analysts anticipate that CRISPR Therapeutics will post -4.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

CRISPR Therapeutics AG is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of gene-editing therapies based on the CRISPR/Cas9 platform. The company applies its proprietary technology to modify genes in human cells, aiming to create durable treatments for a range of serious diseases. Its research and development efforts focus on both ex vivo and in vivo applications, enabling targeted correction or disruption of disease-causing genes.

Among its lead programs is CTX001, an ex vivo edited cell therapy designed to treat sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia in collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

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