Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Stock Position Lifted by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) by 13.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 194,554 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 23,710 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.28% of Merus worth $9,720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MRUS. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Merus by 24.7% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,467 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Merus by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 33,745 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 936 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Merus by 750.0% during the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Merus during the 3rd quarter valued at about $103,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of Merus by 41.0% in the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 8,847 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $523,000 after buying an additional 2,572 shares in the last quarter. 96.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merus Trading Down 0.3 %

MRUS opened at $44.84 on Monday. Merus has a 1-year low of $22.27 and a 1-year high of $61.61. The business has a 50 day moving average of $49.91 and a 200-day moving average of $51.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.35 and a beta of 1.12.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.95) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $11.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.11 million. Equities analysts predict that Merus will post -3.89 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MRUS. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Merus in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Merus in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Merus from $93.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group started coverage on Merus in a report on Thursday, October 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Merus in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One 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. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.45.

Merus 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.