CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Shares Down 5.8% on Insider Selling

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)’s stock price traded down 5.8% during mid-day trading on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $57.21 and last traded at $57.2870. 681,870 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 1,807,886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.81.

Specifically, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 30,000 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.75, for a total value of $1,552,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 194,201 shares in the company, valued at $10,049,901.75. The trade was a 13.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.23, for a total transaction of $3,613,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 134,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,082,926.23. This represents a 30.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRSP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday. Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $86.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $52.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $75.00 target price on CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $68.15.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Down 6.4%

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.35. The company has a market cap of $5.42 billion, a PE ratio of -10.18 and a beta of 1.70.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($1.17) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.32) by $0.15. The business had revenue of $0.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.74 million. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 21.23% and a negative net margin of 1,273.70%. Equities research analysts forecast that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRSP. Choreo LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 8,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 747 shares during the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in CRISPR Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $155,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in CRISPR Therapeutics by 196.9% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 576 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the period. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,059 shares of the company’s stock worth $999,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

About CRISPR Therapeutics

CRISPR Therapeutics AG is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of gene-editing therapies based on the CRISPR/Cas9 platform. The company applies its proprietary technology to modify genes in human cells, aiming to create durable treatments for a range of serious diseases. Its research and development efforts focus on both ex vivo and in vivo applications, enabling targeted correction or disruption of disease-causing genes.

Among its lead programs is CTX001, an ex vivo edited cell therapy designed to treat sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia in collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals.