Key Points
- Cerus insider Chrystal Jensen sold 24,329 shares on June 30 at an average price of $2.94, totaling $71,527.26. The sale was made to cover tax withholding tied to vesting equity awards.
- CERS stock rose 5.3% and opened at $3.16, near its 52-week high of $3.21. The company has a market cap of $633.17 million and remains below analysts’ average price target of $4.00.
- Analysts are mixed but lean cautious-to-neutral on Cerus, with two Buy ratings, one Hold, and one Sell, resulting in a consensus Hold. The company recently beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, but still reported negative margins and expects a small loss for the year.
Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ:CERS - Get Free Report) insider Chrystal Jensen sold 24,329 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.94, for a total transaction of $71,527.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 966,657 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,841,971.58. This represents a 2.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.
Cerus Stock Up 5.3%
Shares of NASDAQ CERS opened at $3.16 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $633.17 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -63.20 and a beta of 1.77. Cerus Corporation has a 52 week low of $1.15 and a 52 week high of $3.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $2.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.
Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.02. Cerus had a negative net margin of 4.41% and a negative return on equity of 15.18%. The company had revenue of $59.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.68 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cerus Corporation will post -0.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cerus
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CERS. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Cerus by 3.3% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,218,330 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,217,000 after acquiring an additional 39,310 shares during the last quarter. Senvest Management LLC grew its position in shares of Cerus by 3.8% in the first quarter. Senvest Management LLC now owns 4,114,061 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $7,488,000 after purchasing an additional 148,812 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Cerus by 16.2% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 578,900 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,054,000 after purchasing an additional 80,900 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Cerus by 56.6% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 34,676 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 12,536 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Cerus during the 1st quarter worth approximately $206,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.37% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cerus from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. BTIG Research raised Cerus from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $4.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Cerus in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Cerus from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cerus presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $4.00.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Cerus
Cerus Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company dedicated to enhancing the safety of blood transfusions worldwide. Its flagship offering, the INTERCEPT Blood System, employs pathogen reduction technology designed to inactivate a broad spectrum of viruses, bacteria, and parasites in donated platelets and plasma. This approach aims to mitigate the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections and improve blood component safety for patients.
The INTERCEPT platform integrates seamlessly into existing blood center workflows, providing a one-step treatment process for collected blood products.
Further Reading
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