Geron (NASDAQ:GERN) Shares Down 6.6% – Should You Sell?

Geron Corporation (NASDAQ:GERN) fell 6.6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $1.33 and last traded at $1.3350. 5,482,373 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 40% from the average session volume of 9,167,192 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Geron in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Geron in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Geron from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Geron in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Geron has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.75.

Geron Stock Down 8.4%

The company has a market capitalization of $836.24 million, a PE ratio of -10.92 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 4.87 and a current ratio of 5.96. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $1.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.30.

Geron (NASDAQ:GERN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $47.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.24 million. Geron had a negative net margin of 43.61% and a negative return on equity of 29.63%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Geron Corporation will post -0.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Geron

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vestal Point Capital LP lifted its stake in Geron by 8.0% during the second quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP now owns 23,775,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $33,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,769,660 shares during the last quarter. Soleus Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Geron by 572.5% in the second quarter. Soleus Capital Management L.P. now owns 16,140,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $22,757,000 after acquiring an additional 13,740,000 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Geron by 4.3% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,152,038 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $19,956,000 after purchasing an additional 584,444 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of Geron by 97.8% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 11,367,989 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $15,574,000 after purchasing an additional 5,620,635 shares during the period. Finally, Nantahala Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Geron in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $12,364,000. 73.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Geron Company Profile

Geron Corporation (NASDAQ: GERN) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing and commercializing novel treatments that target telomerase, an enzyme critical to cancer cell immortality. The company’s research is focused on hematologic malignancies and solid tumors, with a pipeline designed to address diseases that have historically had limited therapeutic options.

The lead product candidate, imetelstat, is a first-in-class telomerase inhibitor currently in Phase II and Phase III clinical trials for myelofibrosis and myelodysplastic syndromes.