Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Sees Large Volume Increase

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday . Approximately 1,299,066 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 62% from the previous session’s volume of 801,811 shares.The stock last traded at $57.00 and had previously closed at $55.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRUS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, May 24th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Merus from $70.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of Merus in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Merus from $54.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Merus from $90.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merus currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.90.

Merus Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $52.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.16 and a beta of 1.12.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.59) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $7.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.94 million. Merus had a negative return on equity of 44.13% and a negative net margin of 390.36%. Analysts predict that Merus will post -3.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merus news, COO Peter B. Silverman sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $600,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Peter B. Silverman sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $600,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Harry Shuman sold 7,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.84, for a total value of $422,232.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $404,995.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,300 shares of company stock worth $1,392,792. Company insiders own 4.57% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merus

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MRUS. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in Merus by 37.7% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,253 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Merus by 64.1% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,120 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 828 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in Merus during the first quarter valued at approximately $72,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Merus during the first quarter valued at approximately $108,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in Merus by 34.0% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 5,753 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $158,000 after acquiring an additional 1,459 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.14% of the company’s stock.

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.