Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $47.10, but opened at $48.47. Merus shares last traded at $46.90, with a volume of 16,851 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MRUS shares. Bank of America cut their target price on Merus from $73.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on Merus from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Merus in a report on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on Merus from $89.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.31.

Merus Stock Down 0.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.87 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $42.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.31.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.89) by $0.48. The business had revenue of $9.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.57 million. Merus had a negative return on equity of 38.89% and a negative net margin of 680.61%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Merus will post -3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in shares of Merus by 27.3% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 1,400 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC raised its position in Merus by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC now owns 45,680 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,921,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in Merus by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 113,056 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,754,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the period. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd raised its position in Merus by 10.4% in the third quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 5,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Merus by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,636 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,213,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the period. 96.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.