William Blair Brokers Decrease Earnings Estimates for Merus

Key Points

• William Blair has revised its Q3 2025 earnings per share estimate for Merus N.V. down to ($1.21), from a previous estimate of ($1.07), maintaining an "Outperform" rating on the stock.
• Merus recently reported earnings of (2.23) EPS for the last quarter, significantly missing analysts' consensus estimates of (1.17) EPS.
• Insider activity saw COO Peter B. Silverman sell 34,000 shares at an average price of $52.76, totaling nearly $1.8 million, amid ongoing fluctuations in the company's stock performance.

Merus N.V. (NASDAQ:MRUS - Free Report) - Investment analysts at William Blair dropped their Q3 2025 earnings estimates for Merus in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, August 6th. William Blair analyst M. Phipps now expects that the biotechnology company will post earnings of ($1.21) per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of ($1.07). William Blair has a "Outperform" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Merus' current full-year earnings is ($3.85) per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Merus' Q4 2025 earnings at ($1.16) EPS, FY2025 earnings at ($5.98) EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at ($1.15) EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at ($1.06) EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at ($0.89) EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at ($0.88) EPS and FY2026 earnings at ($3.96) EPS.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($2.23) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.17) by ($1.06). The company had revenue of $8.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 million. Merus had a negative net margin of 685.64% and a negative return on equity of 50.28%.

MRUS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merus from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 20th. BMO Capital Markets set a $110.00 target price on shares of Merus and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. HC Wainwright upgraded Merus to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on Merus from $97.00 to $96.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Merus from $91.00 to $89.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.50.

Merus Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:MRUS traded down $1.08 during trading on Friday, hitting $63.52. 220,460 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 880,786. The business's 50 day moving average is $58.22 and its 200-day moving average is $48.93. Merus has a 1-year low of $33.19 and a 1-year high of $67.59. The company has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.54 and a beta of 1.09.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merus

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in Merus by 27.3% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 1,400 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. lifted its holdings in Merus by 21.9% in the first quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. now owns 1,753 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the period. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Merus by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC now owns 45,680 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,921,000 after buying an additional 331 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Merus by 2.7% during the first quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 13,785 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $580,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Merus by 15.7% during the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,674 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $141,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. 96.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merus news, COO Peter B. Silverman sold 25,000 shares of Merus stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $1,500,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 82,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,586,340. Insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Merus Company Profile

Merus N.V., a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company, engages in the development of antibody therapeutics in the Netherlands. Its bispecific antibody candidate pipeline includes Zenocutuzumab (MCLA-128), which is in a phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer and castration-resistant prostate cancer, as well as in Phase 1/2 clinical trials for the treatment of solid tumors that harbor Neuregulin 1.