Mereo BioPharma Group (NASDAQ:MREO) Stock Rating Lowered by Lifesci Capital

Mereo BioPharma Group (NASDAQ:MREO) was downgraded by research analysts at Lifesci Capital from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on MREO. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Mereo BioPharma Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BTIG Research decreased their price target on Mereo BioPharma Group from $6.00 to $1.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Mereo BioPharma Group in a research note on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $5.00 price objective on shares of Mereo BioPharma Group in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Mereo BioPharma Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $4.40.

Mereo BioPharma Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MREO opened at $0.37 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $58.96 million, a P/E ratio of -6.18 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.96. Mereo BioPharma Group has a 1 year low of $0.20 and a 1 year high of $3.84.

Mereo BioPharma Group (NASDAQ:MREO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter. As a group, research analysts expect that Mereo BioPharma Group will post -0.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Forefront Analytics LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mereo BioPharma Group by 73.4% in the 3rd quarter. Forefront Analytics LLC now owns 33,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 14,042 shares in the last quarter. Clearline Capital LP boosted its position in shares of Mereo BioPharma Group by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 3,834,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,898,000 after purchasing an additional 216,000 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Mereo BioPharma Group by 99.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 53,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,000 after buying an additional 26,782 shares during the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mereo BioPharma Group by 90.5% in the 3rd quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,732,724 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,569,000 after acquiring an additional 823,084 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Mereo BioPharma Group during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.83% of the company’s stock.

Key Stores Impacting Mereo BioPharma Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Mereo BioPharma Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BTIG cut its price target to $1.00 but maintained a “buy” rating, which could provide some support from buy-side interest despite a lower valuation. BTIG price target note
• Positive Sentiment: Mereo said it will implement cost controls in response to the trial results, which may help preserve cash runway and reduce near-term dilution risk. Company update on trials and cost controls
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading in MREO was temporarily halted early on the news pending release — a procedural step that amplified volatility but did not itself change fundamentals. (Trading-halt notice issued Dec. 29)
• Negative Sentiment: Company announcement: the Phase 3 ORBIT and COSMIC studies of setrusumab did not achieve their primary endpoints (no statistically significant reduction in annualized clinical fracture rate versus placebo or bisphosphonates). This directly undermines the drug’s approval/commercial case. ORBIT and COSMIC results
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: multiple outlets report the stock plunged after the failed Phase 3 readouts, with heavy volume and sharp price declines reflecting a collapse in investor expectations for setrusumab. Stock plummets coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrade: LifeSci Capital lowered Mereo from “outperform” to “hold,” signaling reduced confidence from the sell side and likely contributing to further selling pressure. LifeSci Capital downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Legal risk: Pomerantz LLP has launched an investor investigation into Mereo, which raises the prospect of litigation and potential liability or settlement costs. Pomerantz investor investigation

Mereo BioPharma Group Company Profile

Mereo BioPharma Group plc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for rare diseases, oncology and severe respiratory conditions. The company pursues an asset‐centric model, in which it in-licenses or acquires clinical-stage small molecules and monoclonal antibodies with established safety profiles. By concentrating resources on a select number of programs, Mereo aims to accelerate proof-of-concept studies and maximize the potential value of each therapeutic candidate.

Mereo’s pipeline includes investigational therapies for skeletal disorders, such as setrusumab (BPS-804) for osteogenesis imperfecta, and treatments for acute and chronic respiratory diseases.