Crescent Biopharma (NASDAQ:CBIO) Trading Up 4.2% – Time to Buy?

Crescent Biopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBIO) shot up 4.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $17.79 and last traded at $17.72. Approximately 32,896 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 267,638 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on CBIO. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Crescent Biopharma in a research report on Friday, August 7th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Crescent Biopharma in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Crescent Biopharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.25.

Crescent Biopharma Trading Up 6.2%

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.43. The firm has a market cap of $670.56 million, a PE ratio of -2.64 and a beta of 1.23.

Crescent Biopharma (NASDAQ:CBIO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.74) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.74). As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Crescent Biopharma, Inc. will post -2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Crescent Biopharma news, COO Jonathan Mcneill sold 20,549 shares of Crescent Biopharma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.99, for a total transaction of $369,676.51. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 139,158 shares in the company, valued at $2,503,452.42. The trade was a 12.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Joshua T. Brumm sold 42,305 shares of Crescent Biopharma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.99, for a total transaction of $761,066.95. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 281,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,059,003.88. The trade was a 13.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 68,156 shares of company stock valued at $1,226,126 in the last three months. 24.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Crescent Biopharma

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Crescent Biopharma in the second quarter worth $38,000. California State Teachers Retirement System purchased a new stake in Crescent Biopharma during the second quarter valued at about $96,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp purchased a new stake in Crescent Biopharma during the fourth quarter valued at about $138,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Crescent Biopharma during the second quarter worth about $149,000. Finally, HRT Financial LP bought a new stake in Crescent Biopharma during the fourth quarter worth about $155,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.19% of the company’s stock.

About Crescent Biopharma

Crescent Biopharma, Inc (NASDAQ: CBIO) is a clinical?stage immuno?oncology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapies for patients with solid tumors. The company’s research strategy centers on combination approaches that enhance anti?tumor immune responses by simultaneously targeting multiple pathways implicated in immune evasion and tumor growth.

The company’s lead candidate, CPB-201, is a bifunctional fusion protein designed to block programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) while neutralizing transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-?), with the goal of restoring T-cell activity and reducing tumor fibrosis.