Crescent Biopharma, Inc. $CBIO Shares Sold by Perceptive Advisors LLC

Perceptive Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Crescent Biopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBIO) by 54.4% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 206,942 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 246,744 shares during the period. Perceptive Advisors LLC’s holdings in Crescent Biopharma were worth $3,802,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Commodore Capital LP purchased a new position in Crescent Biopharma in the second quarter valued at about $7,322,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Crescent Biopharma during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,629,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Crescent Biopharma during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $149,000. Soleus Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Crescent Biopharma during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,456,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Crescent Biopharma in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $7,822,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.19% of the company’s stock.

Crescent Biopharma Trading Down 3.7%

Shares of NASDAQ CBIO opened at $14.47 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $17.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $15.80. Crescent Biopharma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $8.72 and a 52 week high of $27.41. The stock has a market cap of $398.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.15 and a beta of 1.20.

Crescent Biopharma (NASDAQ:CBIO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.74) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.74). As a group, research analysts expect that Crescent Biopharma, Inc. will post -3.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on CBIO. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Crescent Biopharma in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Crescent Biopharma from a “sell (e)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Jonathan Mcneill sold 20,549 shares of Crescent Biopharma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.99, for a total transaction of $369,676.51. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at 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 the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.99, for a total value of $761,066.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 281,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,059,003.88. The trade was a 13.08% decrease in their position. 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 68,156 shares of company stock valued at $1,226,126. Corporate insiders own 24.84% of the company’s stock.

Crescent Biopharma Company Profile

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-β), with the goal of restoring T-cell activity and reducing tumor fibrosis.