Insider Selling: CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) Director Sells $780,934.11 in Stock

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) Director Ali Behbahani sold 13,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total value of $780,934.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 16,637 shares in the company, valued at $949,806.33. This represents a 45.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

CRISPR Therapeutics Price Performance

CRSP stock opened at $55.76 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $53.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.76. The company has a quick ratio of 17.85, a current ratio of 17.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $5.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.71 and a beta of 1.76. CRISPR Therapeutics AG has a 52-week low of $44.12 and a 52-week high of $78.48.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The company reported ($0.94) EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $10.18 million during the quarter. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 3,368.72% and a negative return on equity of 24.39%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that CRISPR Therapeutics AG will post -4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRSP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, August 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Morgan Stanley set a $60.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CRISPR Therapeutics has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.94.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRISPR Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,892,745 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,016,000 after purchasing an additional 243,487 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in CRISPR Therapeutics by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,249,223 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,971,000 after buying an additional 108,053 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in CRISPR Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,706,000. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 169,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,073,000 after buying an additional 8,200 shares during the period. Finally, Affinity Asset Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in the first quarter worth $7,136,000. 69.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ: CRSP) is a biotechnology company focused on developing gene-editing medicines using CRISPR/Cas9 technology. The company’s programs are designed to modify disease-associated genes in human cells, with the goal of treating serious conditions across hematology, oncology, autoimmune disease and regenerative medicine.

Its most advanced product is Casgevy (exa-cel), an autologous cell therapy developed in collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Casgevy uses CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing to modify a patient’s blood stem cells and is approved in several markets for eligible patients with sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia.