Geron (NASDAQ:GERN) Sets New 52-Week Low - What's Next?

Shares of Geron Co. (NASDAQ:GERN - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $1.28 and last traded at $1.41, with a volume of 13683362 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $1.38.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on GERN shares. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $4.00 target price (down from $9.00) on shares of Geron in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $5.00 target price on shares of Geron in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Geron in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. B. Riley downgraded shares of Geron from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $3.50 to $2.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Geron from $8.00 to $4.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $5.75.

Geron Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $1.93 and a 200-day moving average of $3.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $878.93 million, a PE ratio of -4.31 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.74 and a current ratio of 2.89.

Geron (NASDAQ:GERN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.04). The company had revenue of $47.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.29 million. Geron had a negative return on equity of 67.53% and a negative net margin of 682.48%. Research analysts forecast that Geron Co. will post -0.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Moody National Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in shares of Geron by 10.4% during the first quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 295,425 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $470,000 after acquiring an additional 27,796 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Geron by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,510,114 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $47,826,000 after acquiring an additional 847,710 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Geron by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 484,962 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,717,000 after acquiring an additional 52,846 shares during the period. 111 Capital bought a new stake in Geron in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Geron by 121.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 91,361 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $323,000 after purchasing an additional 50,066 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.71% of the company's stock.

About Geron

Geron Corporation, a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapeutics for myeloid hematologic malignancies. It develops imetelstat, a telomerase inhibitor that is in Phase 3 clinical trials, which inhibits the uncontrolled proliferation of malignant stem and progenitor cells in myeloid hematologic malignancies for the treatment of low or intermediate-1 risk myelodysplastic syndromes and intermediate-2 or high-risk myelofibrosis.