Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Trading 6% Higher – Should You Buy?

Shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) shot up 6% on Monday . The company traded as high as $47.99 and last traded at $47.51. 101,913 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 679,459 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.84.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MRUS shares. UBS Group began coverage on Merus in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $72.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Merus in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Merus in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $109.00 price objective (down previously from $111.00) on shares of Merus in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Merus in a research note on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.27.

Merus Stock Down 4.8 %

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $49.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.16 billion, a PE ratio of -11.70 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merus

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRUS. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merus by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,256,504 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $117,722,000 after acquiring an additional 150,341 shares during the last quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd grew its holdings in Merus by 10.4% during the third quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 5,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new stake in Merus in the third quarter worth about $206,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Merus by 73.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,887,514 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $144,260,000 after buying an additional 1,224,573 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merus during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $358,000. Institutional investors own 96.14% of the company’s stock.

About Merus

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.