KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Purchases New Holdings in Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 10,300 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $433,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Merus by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 84,200 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,207,000 after buying an additional 12,212 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merus in the third quarter worth $358,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Merus by 73.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,887,514 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $144,260,000 after acquiring an additional 1,224,573 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in Merus by 4,583.6% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 57,234 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,407,000 after purchasing an additional 56,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its stake in Merus by 29.0% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 48,268 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,030,000 after purchasing an additional 10,842 shares in the last quarter. 96.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MRUS shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on Merus from $89.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $109.00 target price on shares of Merus in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of Merus from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Merus from $73.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Merus in a report on Thursday, February 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $84.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.31.

Merus Trading Down 8.7 %

Shares of Merus stock opened at $38.11 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.65 and a beta of 1.02. Merus has a 1 year low of $36.46 and a 1 year high of $61.61. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $44.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.77.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.89) by $0.48. Merus had a negative net margin of 680.61% and a negative return on equity of 38.89%. The company had revenue of $9.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.57 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merus will post -3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merus 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.