CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Trading Down 2.9% on Insider Selling

Shares of CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) traded down 2.9% during trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $42.78 and last traded at $42.22. 282,558 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 2,214,576 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.49.

Specifically, COO Julianne Bruno sold 1,198 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.42, for a total value of $50,819.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,263 shares in the company, valued at $350,516.46. This trade represents a 12.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel James R. Kasinger sold 2,850 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.42, for a total value of $120,897.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 77,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,288,822.60. This represents a 3.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In other news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 9,973 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.42, for a total transaction of $423,054.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 180,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,673,353.80. The trade was a 5.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on CRSP shares. Bank of America reduced their target price on CRISPR Therapeutics from $98.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on CRISPR Therapeutics from $66.00 to $57.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI upgraded CRISPR Therapeutics from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded CRISPR Therapeutics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on CRISPR Therapeutics from $53.00 to $48.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CRISPR Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.11.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.64 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.58.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported ($0.44) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.15) by $0.71. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 18.46% and a negative net margin of 981.54%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

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.