Erasca Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:ERAS)

Erasca, Inc. (NASDAQ:ERAS) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Investors purchased 39,645 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,289% compared to the average volume of 2,854 call options.

Erasca Stock Down 0.6%

Erasca stock traded down $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $14.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 987,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,923,321. Erasca has a twelve month low of $1.79 and a twelve month high of $24.28. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $17.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.27 and a beta of 0.64.

Erasca (NASDAQ:ERAS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11) by ($0.03). Equities analysts expect that Erasca will post -0.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ERAS shares. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Erasca in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. HSBC set a $20.00 target price on shares of Erasca in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Erasca from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Wolfe Research set a $16.00 target price on shares of Erasca in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Erasca from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.09.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ERAS. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Erasca by 295.5% during the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 216,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,505,000 after acquiring an additional 161,845 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB purchased a new position in Erasca during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,500,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Erasca by 89.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,055,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,444,000 after buying an additional 1,444,047 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Erasca in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $387,544,000. Finally, E Fund Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Erasca during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,862,000. 67.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Erasca Company Profile

Erasca, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing treatments for cancers driven by abnormalities in the RAS/MAPK signaling pathway. The company’s research and development strategy is centered on precision oncology, with the goal of addressing cancers that have historically been difficult to treat because of mutations in RAS and related proteins.

Erasca’s lead investigational program is daraxonrasib, also known as RMC-6236, an oral RAS(ON) multi-selective inhibitor designed to target active RAS proteins.