Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS - Free Report) had its price target hoisted by Citigroup from $89.00 to $97.00 in a research report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the biotechnology company's stock.

MRUS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Merus in a research report on Monday. UBS Group started coverage on Merus in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Merus in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Merus in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $109.00 price objective (down from $111.00) on shares of Merus in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $85.64.

Merus Price Performance

NASDAQ MRUS traded down $0.80 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $42.94. 453,878 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 683,634. The company has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of -11.07 and a beta of 1.07. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $49.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.91. Merus has a 52 week low of $22.27 and a 52 week high of $61.61.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merus

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MRUS. nVerses Capital LLC boosted its stake in Merus by 750.0% during the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE acquired a new position in Merus in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $103,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Merus by 24.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,467 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $118,000 after buying an additional 489 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC bought a new stake in Merus in the third quarter worth approximately $206,000. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merus during the 2nd quarter worth $237,000. 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.