Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $47.10, but opened at $48.47. Merus shares last traded at $46.90, with a volume of 16,851 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MRUS shares. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Merus in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, February 28th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on Merus from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Merus in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $91.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Merus in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $84.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.31.

Merus Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.87 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a 50-day moving average of $42.90 and a 200-day moving average of $46.31.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last announced its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $9.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.57 million. Merus had a negative return on equity of 38.89% and a negative net margin of 680.61%. On average, research analysts predict that Merus will post -3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Merus

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Merus by 17.0% during the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 12,212 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Merus during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $675,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D purchased a new stake in Merus during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,870,000. US Bancorp DE purchased a new position in shares of Merus during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $103,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merus during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $358,000. 96.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.