Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

Capricor Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:CAPR - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $17.07, but opened at $17.90. Capricor Therapeutics shares last traded at $19.23, with a volume of 1,607,629 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Maxim Group raised their price target on shares of Capricor Therapeutics from $12.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $8.00 price target on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.60.

Capricor Therapeutics Price Performance

The company's fifty day moving average price is $5.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.58. The company has a market cap of $692.35 million, a PE ratio of -23.59 and a beta of 3.92.

Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.35) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.32) by ($0.03). Capricor Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 102.93% and a negative return on equity of 220.27%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.51 million. On average, analysts forecast that Capricor Therapeutics Inc will post -1.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Shinyaku Co Ltd Nippon purchased 2,798,507 shares of Capricor Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $5.36 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,997.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,090,351 shares in the company, valued at $38,004,281.36. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 12.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Capricor Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Capricor Therapeutics by 17.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,365,903 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $9,274,000 after buying an additional 200,499 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers purchased a new stake in Capricor Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter worth about $147,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new stake in Capricor Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Capricor Therapeutics by 12.8% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 79,782 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 9,040 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in Capricor Therapeutics by 37.5% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 27,500 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 21.68% of the company's stock.

About Capricor Therapeutics

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: CAPR is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of first-in-class biological therapeutics for the treatment of rare disorders. Capricor’s lead candidate, CAP-1002, is an allogeneic cell therapy that is currently in clinical development for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.