Primecap Management Co. CA Reduces Stock Holdings in Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS)

Primecap Management Co. CA lessened its stake in Cerus Co. (NASDAQ:CERS) by 0.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,544,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 40,000 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA owned about 4.60% of Cerus worth $14,867,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Secure Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cerus in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Cerus by 451.1% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 14,879 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 12,179 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its stake in shares of Cerus by 51.3% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 24,809 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 8,411 shares during the last quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Cerus during the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cerus in the third quarter worth $71,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.37% of the company’s stock.

Cerus Price Performance

Shares of CERS opened at $1.79 on Friday. Cerus Co. has a 52 week low of $1.38 and a 52 week high of $2.59. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market cap of $332.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.27 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1.75 and a 200-day moving average of $1.92.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Cerus from $6.00 to $3.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 17th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Kevin Dennis Green sold 28,385 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.18, for a total transaction of $61,879.30. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 590,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,286,995.70. This represents a 4.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.