Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.24 EPS

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The biotechnology company reported ($0.59) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.24, reports. Merus had a negative net margin of 352.56% and a negative return on equity of 50.61%. The business had revenue of $7.89 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.94 million.

Merus Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of Merus stock traded down $1.03 during trading on Friday, hitting $44.09. The stock had a trading volume of 93,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 596,164. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.42. The company has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a PE ratio of -14.84 and a beta of 1.10. Merus has a 1 year low of $19.81 and a 1 year high of $52.03.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MRUS. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Merus in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $66.00 price objective on shares of Merus in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Merus from $40.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Merus in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Merus from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.33.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in shares of Merus by 37.7% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,253 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Merus by 142.1% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,477 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 867 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in Merus by 64.1% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,120 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 828 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Merus during the first quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Merus during the first quarter valued at approximately $108,000. 96.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merus Company Profile

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.