Vivek K. Jayaraman Sells 29,985 Shares of Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS) Stock

Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS) COO Vivek K. Jayaraman sold 29,985 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.45, for a total transaction of $43,478.25. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,477,330 shares in the company, valued at $2,142,128.50. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Cerus Price Performance

Cerus stock opened at $1.43 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.68 million, a P/E ratio of -13.00 and a beta of 1.56. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $1.72 and a 200-day moving average of $1.75. Cerus Co. has a 52-week low of $1.38 and a 52-week high of $2.54.

Cerus (NASDAQ:CERS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. 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 11.60% and a negative return on equity of 40.55%. The company had revenue of $50.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.81 million. As a group, analysts predict that Cerus Co. will post -0.08 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $4.00 price target on shares of Cerus in a research note on Friday, February 21st.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cerus

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cerus in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cerus by 2,084.7% in the 4th quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 492,732 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $759,000 after acquiring an additional 470,178 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in shares of Cerus by 249.5% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 254,100 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $391,000 after acquiring an additional 181,400 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Cerus by 121.6% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 595,234 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $917,000 after acquiring an additional 326,605 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its stake in Cerus by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 129,840 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $200,000 after buying an additional 36,488 shares during the last quarter. 78.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cerus Company Profile

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.