Short Interest in CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) Rises By 5.7%

CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,590,000 shares, an increase of 5.7% from the October 15th total of 17,590,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,160,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 16.0 days.

CRISPR Therapeutics Stock Performance

CRISPR Therapeutics stock traded down $0.30 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $47.00. 1,019,160 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,480,850. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $47.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.02. CRISPR Therapeutics has a one year low of $43.42 and a one year high of $91.10.

CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($1.01) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.42) by $0.41. CRISPR Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 118.13% and a negative return on equity of 12.15%. The company had revenue of $0.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.65 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.41) earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that CRISPR Therapeutics will post -5.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CRSP. Chardan Capital dropped their price objective on CRISPR Therapeutics from $112.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on CRISPR Therapeutics from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $53.00 price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Rodman & Renshaw started coverage on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 target price for the company. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of CRISPR Therapeutics from $120.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.94.

Insider Activity at CRISPR Therapeutics

In other CRISPR Therapeutics news, General Counsel James R. Kasinger sold 1,089 shares of CRISPR Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.28, for a total transaction of $50,398.92. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 62,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,896,989.16. The trade was a 1.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.62, for a total transaction of $1,668,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 196,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,931,554.80. This trade represents a 13.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 35,382 shares of company stock worth $1,917,679. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CRSP. SFE Investment Counsel increased its holdings in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. SFE Investment Counsel now owns 5,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in CRISPR Therapeutics by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $249,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the period. Boston Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 2.2% during the third quarter. Boston Family Office LLC now owns 9,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $459,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the period. Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC raised its stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 0.8% during the third quarter. Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC now owns 26,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,238,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of CRISPR Therapeutics by 35.0% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

CRISPR Therapeutics Company Profile

CRISPR Therapeutics is a gene-editing company focused on developing transformative gene-based medicines for serious diseases using its proprietary CRISPR/Cas9 platform. CRISPR/Cas9 is a revolutionary gene-editing technology that allows for precise, directed changes to genomic DNA. CRISPR Therapeutics has established a portfolio of therapeutic programs across a broad range of disease areas including hemoglobinopathies, oncology, regenerative medicine and rare diseases.