Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) Price Target Lowered to $3.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) had its price target decreased by Stifel Nicolaus from $6.00 to $3.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Cerus Stock Up 4.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CERS opened at $1.70 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market cap of $314.31 million, a P/E ratio of -10.00 and a beta of 1.18. Cerus has a 12 month low of $1.21 and a 12 month high of $2.59. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $1.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1.93.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $45.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $42.50 million. Cerus had a negative net margin of 14.15% and a negative return on equity of 44.27%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.07) EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Cerus will post -0.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cerus news, insider Richard J. Benjamin sold 21,605 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.50, for a total transaction of $54,012.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 438,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,095,017.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Kevin Dennis Green sold 28,385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.18, for a total value of $61,879.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 590,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,286,995.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Richard J. Benjamin sold 21,605 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.50, for a total value of $54,012.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 438,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,095,017.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cerus by 1.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,983,963 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $18,870,000 after purchasing an additional 113,292 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Cerus by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 7,750,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,649,000 after buying an additional 182,629 shares during the period. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. grew its stake in Cerus by 2.4% in the first quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 7,750,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $14,571,000 after acquiring an additional 182,629 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cerus by 4.4% in the first quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,696,560 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,096,000 after acquiring an additional 114,628 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hood River Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Cerus by 390.4% during the second quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC now owns 1,469,754 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170,060 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.37% of the company’s stock.

Cerus Company Profile

Cerus Corporation operates as a biomedical products company. The company focuses on developing and commercializing the INTERCEPT Blood System to enhance blood safety. Its INTERCEPT Blood System, a proprietary technology for controlling biological replication that is designed to reduce blood-borne pathogens in donated blood components intended for transfusion.