Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Stock

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) had its target price lifted by Barclays from $55.00 to $56.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Barclays‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 41.34% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Chardan Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $94.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $84.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen upgraded shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CRISPR Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $86.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CRISPR Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $75.28.

CRISPR Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CRSP opened at $39.62 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $42.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.00 and a beta of 1.67. CRISPR Therapeutics has a one year low of $36.52 and a one year high of $91.10.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported ($0.44) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.15) by $0.71. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 12.15% and a negative net margin of 118.13%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that CRISPR Therapeutics will post -5.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.10, for a total value of $826,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 181,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,002,854. This trade represents a 7.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP grew its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $70,000. 69.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CRISPR Therapeutics

CRISPR Therapeutics is a gene-editing company focused on developing transformative gene-based medicines for serious diseases using its proprietary CRISPR/Cas9 platform. CRISPR/Cas9 is a revolutionary gene-editing technology that allows for precise, directed changes to genomic DNA. CRISPR Therapeutics has established a portfolio of therapeutic programs across a broad range of disease areas including hemoglobinopathies, oncology, regenerative medicine and rare diseases.