Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Saturday.

Separately, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Cerus in a report on Monday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Cerus Price Performance

Shares of CERS stock opened at $1.93 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $370.89 million, a P/E ratio of -24.13 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Cerus has a 1-year low of $1.12 and a 1-year high of $2.96. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $2.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1.86.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01). Cerus had a negative net margin of 7.58% and a negative return on equity of 26.09%. The business had revenue of $64.58 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.31 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cerus will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Kevin Dennis Green sold 27,796 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.01, for a total transaction of $55,869.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,168,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,347,870.95. The trade was a 2.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Vivek K. Jayaraman sold 34,094 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.01, for a total transaction of $68,528.94. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 1,912,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,844,876.74. This represents a 1.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 296,816 shares of company stock worth $594,406 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cerus

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CERS. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in Cerus during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. MML Investors Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of Cerus by 68.4% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 18,712 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 7,603 shares during the period. Bingham Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cerus during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cerus during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.37% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Cerus

Here are the key news stories impacting Cerus this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data flagged an apparent increase for the March 9 reporting period but shows 0 shares and reports a days-to-cover of 0.0 — the print looks incorrect or incomplete and should be treated as unreliable until exchanges update filings.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts overview: The Globe and Mail ran a piece discussing analysts’ views on Cerus alongside peers (Fennec). That coverage provides context but does not appear to contain new company-specific catalysts. Analysts Offer Insights on Healthcare Companies: Cerus (CERS) and Fennec Pharmaceuticals (FENC)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: several insiders disclosed sales between Mar. 5–9 that reduce insider ownership by low-single-digit to mid-single-digit percentages. Notable filings: CEO William Mariner Greenman sold 78,187 shares (~$157k). COO Vivek Jayaraman sold 34,094 shares (~$68.5k). CFO Kevin D. Green sold 27,796 shares (~$55.9k). Director Richard J. Benjamin reported multiple sales (61,233; 40,426; 24,235 shares) at ~$2.06–$1.88 across Mar. 5–9. Insider Chrystal Jensen sold 30,845 shares (~$62k). Collectively, these are meaningful in signaling added supply and may weigh on sentiment even if sales were for personal/liquidity reasons. CEO filing: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1020214/000137725826000004/xslF345X05/ownership.xml COO filing: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1020214/000160545626000004/xslF345X05/ownership.xml Chrystal Jensen filing: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1020214/000156425226000004/xslF345X05/ownership.xml Richard Benjamin filings: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1020214/000129632226000004/xslF345X05/ownership.xml CFO filing: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1020214/000145935126000005/xslF345X05/ownership.xml

Cerus Company Profile

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company dedicated to enhancing the safety of blood transfusions worldwide. Its flagship offering, the INTERCEPT Blood System, employs pathogen reduction technology designed to inactivate a broad spectrum of viruses, bacteria, and parasites in donated platelets and plasma. This approach aims to mitigate the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections and improve blood component safety for patients.

The INTERCEPT platform integrates seamlessly into existing blood center workflows, providing a one-step treatment process for collected blood products.