Wasatch Advisors LP Sells 181,480 Shares of Cerus Corporation $CERS

Wasatch Advisors LP trimmed its position in shares of Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ:CERS) by 3.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,281,136 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 181,480 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings in Cerus were worth $9,612,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CERS. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cerus by 152.4% during the 1st quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 104,101 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 62,854 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Cerus by 291.6% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,429,062 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,986,000 after acquiring an additional 1,064,133 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Cerus by 12.0% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,222,327 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,479,000 after acquiring an additional 344,395 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in Cerus in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in Cerus by 6.8% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 268,946 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 17,039 shares in the last quarter. 78.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cerus news, Director Eric Bjerkholt sold 20,454 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.60, for a total transaction of $53,180.40. Following the sale, the director owned 261,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $680,365.40. The trade was a 7.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Vivek K. Jayaraman sold 16,667 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.00, for a total transaction of $50,001.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 1,656,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,970,121. This trade represents a 1.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 53,788 shares of company stock worth $153,182 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Cerus Trading Up 2.1%

CERS opened at $2.92 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $2.51 and its 200-day moving average is $2.26. Cerus Corporation has a 1-year low of $1.15 and a 1-year high of $3.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $585.08 million, a P/E ratio of -58.40 and a beta of 1.77.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $59.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.68 million. Cerus had a negative net margin of 4.41% and a negative return on equity of 15.18%. Equities research analysts predict that Cerus Corporation will post -0.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CERS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cerus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cerus in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. BTIG Research raised Cerus from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $4.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Cerus from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $4.00.

About Cerus

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company dedicated to enhancing the safety of blood transfusions worldwide. Its flagship offering, the INTERCEPT Blood System, employs pathogen reduction technology designed to inactivate a broad spectrum of viruses, bacteria, and parasites in donated platelets and plasma. This approach aims to mitigate the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections and improve blood component safety for patients.

The INTERCEPT platform integrates seamlessly into existing blood center workflows, providing a one-step treatment process for collected blood products.