KBC Group NV Acquires 56,012 Shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS)

KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) by 4,583.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 57,234 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 56,012 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned about 0.08% of Merus worth $2,407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. nVerses Capital LLC boosted its position in Merus by 750.0% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merus in the 4th quarter valued at $76,000. US Bancorp DE bought a new position in Merus in the 3rd quarter valued at $103,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position 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 last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merus in the 2nd quarter valued at $242,000. 96.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on MRUS. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Merus in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup increased their price target on Merus from $89.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Merus in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Merus in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $109.00 price target (down previously from $111.00) on shares of Merus in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.64.

Merus Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of Merus stock opened at $40.94 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of -10.36 and a beta of 1.10. Merus has a 12 month low of $35.06 and a 12 month high of $61.61. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.18.

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $11.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.11 million. Merus had a negative return on equity of 38.89% and a negative net margin of 680.61%. Analysts predict that Merus will post -3.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.