Richard J. Benjamin Sells 51,254 Shares of Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS) Stock

Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS) insider Richard J. Benjamin sold 51,254 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.58, for a total transaction of $80,981.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 400,665 shares in the company, valued at $633,050.70. This trade represents a 11.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Cerus Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CERS opened at $1.61 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 2.59. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $1.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.80. The company has a market capitalization of $299.12 million, a PE ratio of -14.64 and a beta of 1.29. Cerus Co. has a 1 year low of $1.38 and a 1 year high of $2.59.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01). The company had revenue of $50.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.81 million. Cerus had a negative net margin of 11.60% and a negative return on equity of 40.55%. On average, research analysts predict that Cerus Co. will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $4.00 price objective on shares of Cerus in a report on Friday, February 21st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cerus

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CERS. Rockport Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Cerus during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 78.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cerus

Cerus Corporation operates as a biomedical products company. The company focuses on developing and commercializing the INTERCEPT Blood System to enhance blood safety. Its INTERCEPT Blood System, a proprietary technology for controlling biological replication that is designed to reduce blood-borne pathogens in donated blood components intended for transfusion.