China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Holdings in Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,517 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 1,398 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Merus were worth $610,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Merus by 73.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,887,514 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $144,260,000 after buying an additional 1,224,573 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Merus by 10.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,873,926 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $343,421,000 after acquiring an additional 648,994 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in Merus in the third quarter worth approximately $30,399,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in Merus by 83.0% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 723,988 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $36,171,000 after acquiring an additional 328,316 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Merus by 7.1% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,256,504 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $117,722,000 after purchasing an additional 150,341 shares during the period. 96.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on MRUS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Merus in a report on Thursday, November 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Merus from $89.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $109.00 price objective (down from $111.00) on shares of Merus in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Merus in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Merus in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.64.

Merus Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MRUS opened at $40.94 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $42.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.12. The company has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.36 and a beta of 1.10. Merus has a 1-year low of $35.06 and a 1-year high of $61.61.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.95) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.05). Merus had a negative return on equity of 38.89% and a negative net margin of 680.61%. The firm had revenue of $11.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.11 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Merus will post -3.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.