Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS) Short Interest Up 16.0% in March

Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,880,000 shares, an increase of 16.0% from the March 15th total of 5,070,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,620,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Craig Hallum assumed coverage on Cerus in a research note on Friday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $5.00 price target on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $2.50 price target on shares of Cerus in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $3.00 price target on shares of Cerus in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th.

Cerus Trading Down 2.9 %

Cerus stock traded down $0.05 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $1.68. 805,874 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,568,622. Cerus has a 52-week low of $1.21 and a 52-week high of $3.08. The company has a market capitalization of $304.55 million, a P/E ratio of -8.00 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $2.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1.84.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01). Cerus had a negative return on equity of 67.17% and a negative net margin of 23.98%. The firm had revenue of $46.77 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.80 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Cerus will post -0.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cerus

In other Cerus news, insider Chrystal Jensen sold 17,460 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.06, for a total value of $35,967.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 508,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,047,996.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Cerus news, CFO Kevin Dennis Green sold 21,497 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.97, for a total value of $42,349.09. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 618,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,218,937.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Chrystal Jensen sold 17,460 shares of Cerus stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.06, for a total value of $35,967.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 508,736 shares in the company, valued at $1,047,996.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 177,516 shares of company stock valued at $372,912. Company insiders own 7.05% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cerus

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bouvel Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Cerus by 4.7% during the first quarter. Bouvel Investment Partners LLC now owns 269,849 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $510,000 after buying an additional 12,224 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Cerus by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,870,671 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $21,321,000 after purchasing an additional 121,427 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Cerus by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 703,983 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,521,000 after purchasing an additional 100,509 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Cerus in the fourth quarter valued at $180,000. Finally, Sierra Summit Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Cerus in the fourth quarter valued at $254,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.37% of the company’s stock.

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.