Bank of America Initiates Coverage on ProQR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PRQR)

Research analysts at Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of ProQR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PRQR) in a note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $8.00 price target on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Bank of America‘s price target points to a potential upside of 260.36% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of ProQR Therapeutics from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Chardan Capital reduced their target price on ProQR Therapeutics from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of ProQR Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. JonesTrading dropped their price target on ProQR Therapeutics from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded ProQR Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $7.50.

ProQR Therapeutics Stock Up 3.3%

NASDAQ:PRQR opened at $2.22 on Thursday. ProQR Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $1.33 and a twelve month high of $3.10. The company has a fifty day moving average of $1.78 and a 200-day moving average of $1.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $233.90 million, a P/E ratio of -4.83 and a beta of 0.07.

ProQR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PRQR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $10.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.56 million. ProQR Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 223.51% and a negative return on equity of 73.83%. On average, analysts anticipate that ProQR Therapeutics will post -0.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ProQR Therapeutics news, CEO Boer Daniel Anton De acquired 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 9th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $1.74 per share, for a total transaction of $261,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 300,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $522,000. This represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Bart Filius acquired 150,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1.72 per share, for a total transaction of $258,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 300,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $516,000. This represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have acquired a total of 600,000 shares of company stock valued at $988,500 in the last 90 days. 8.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ProQR Therapeutics

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in ProQR Therapeutics by 699.3% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 91,120 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 79,720 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in ProQR Therapeutics by 25.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 119,198 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 24,347 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of ProQR Therapeutics by 28.4% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 121,494 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 26,893 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of ProQR Therapeutics by 59.6% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 12,050 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 4,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its holdings in shares of ProQR Therapeutics by 86.3% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 417,300 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $889,000 after purchasing an additional 193,260 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 32.65% of the company’s stock.

ProQR Therapeutics Company Profile

ProQR Therapeutics N.V. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing RNA-based therapies for severe genetic diseases. Utilizing its proprietary Axiomer® RNA editing platform, ProQR aims to correct disease-causing mutations directly at the messenger RNA level. The company’s pipeline features several investigational candidates, including sepofarsen (formerly QR-110) for Leber congenital amaurosis type 10, QR-421a targeting Usher syndrome and certain forms of retinitis pigmentosa, and QR-313 for dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa.

Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Leiden, the Netherlands, ProQR maintains a significant presence in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to support its clinical research and regulatory initiatives.