Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) is Ally Bridge Group NY LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Ally Bridge Group NY LLC boosted its holdings in Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) by 19.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 208,244 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 33,400 shares during the quarter. Merus comprises approximately 5.6% of Ally Bridge Group NY LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Ally Bridge Group NY LLC’s holdings in Merus were worth $10,404,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD acquired a new position in shares of Merus in the 1st quarter valued at $53,377,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Merus by 813.3% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 957,952 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $56,682,000 after acquiring an additional 853,060 shares during the last quarter. Logos Global Management LP purchased a new stake in Merus during the second quarter valued at about $50,294,000. Novo Holdings A S acquired a new stake in Merus during the second quarter worth about $39,940,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merus by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,873,926 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $343,421,000 after purchasing an additional 648,994 shares during the period. 96.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRUS has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Merus in a report on Thursday, November 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Merus in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Merus from $93.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Merus in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Merus in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $72.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Merus currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.45.

Merus Stock Performance

NASDAQ MRUS opened at $44.97 on Thursday. Merus has a one year low of $22.27 and a one year high of $61.61. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a PE ratio of -11.38 and a beta of 1.12.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.95) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $11.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.11 million. Merus had a negative net margin of 680.61% and a negative return on equity of 38.89%. Equities analysts forecast that Merus will post -3.89 earnings per share for the current year.

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.