Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) Now Covered by Analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group

Investment analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) in a research note issued on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price target on the biotechnology company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 60.47% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Merus in a report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group began coverage on Merus in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Lifesci Capital upgraded shares of Merus to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Merus to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Merus from $93.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. One 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.45.

Merus Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MRUS opened at $45.49 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $50.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.81. Merus has a fifty-two week low of $22.26 and a fifty-two week high of $61.61. The company has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.30 and a beta of 1.12.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.95) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $11.77 million during 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Merus will post -3.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Merus by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 5,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 470 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merus in the third quarter valued at $206,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Merus by 73.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,887,514 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $144,260,000 after acquiring an additional 1,224,573 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merus during the 3rd quarter worth about $358,000. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Merus by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,637,988 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $81,834,000 after purchasing an additional 64,122 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.