Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Shares Purchased by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 93,954 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,300 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Merus were worth $3,951,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Merus by 17.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 84,200 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,207,000 after buying an additional 12,212 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merus during the third quarter worth $358,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Merus by 73.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,887,514 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $144,260,000 after buying an additional 1,224,573 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Merus by 4,583.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 57,234 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,407,000 after purchasing an additional 56,012 shares during the period. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its stake in shares of Merus by 29.0% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 48,268 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,030,000 after buying an additional 10,842 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.14% of the company’s stock.

Merus Stock Performance

MRUS opened at $46.98 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a PE ratio of -11.89 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $43.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.15. Merus has a 1 year low of $37.77 and a 1 year high of $61.61.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.89) by $0.48. The company had revenue of $9.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.57 million. Merus had a negative net margin of 680.61% and a negative return on equity of 38.89%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Merus will post -3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Merus in a research report on Friday, February 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $91.00 price target for the company. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Merus in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Merus in a report on Thursday, February 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $84.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Merus from $73.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.31.

About Merus

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.