Geron Corp (GERN)

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Geron Corp.(GERN) Downgraded by Zacks Investment Research to Hold
Posted by Carolyn Dwyer on Nov 15th, 2016
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Zacks Investment Research cut shares of Geron Corp. (NASDAQ:GERN) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday.

According to Zacks, “Geron’s third-quarter results were encouraging with the company reporting a narrower-than-expected loss and revenues surpassing estimates. The company's telomerase technology platform represents significant commercial opportunity. The successful development of products that target telomeres could very well change the treatment paradigm for several diseases including oncology, which represents huge commercial potential. We are positive on the company’s agreement with J&J for imetelstat which provides it with a strong partner as well as funds.

However, Geron's dependence on a single pipeline candidate is concerning. Imetelstat has already run into trouble earlier with the FDA placing a full clinical hold. Moreover, unfavorable findings from the planned internal reviews of initial data from the two late-stage studies – IMbark and IMerge – were disappointing. Investor focus will remain on imetelstat-related updates.”

GERN has been the topic of several other research reports. FBR & Co reaffirmed an outperform rating and set a $5.00 price target on shares of Geron Corp. in a research report on Thursday, September 22nd. Piper Jaffray Cos. reaffirmed an overweight rating and set a $5.00 price target (down previously from $10.00) on shares of Geron Corp. in a research report on Tuesday, September 13th.

Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Geron Corp. in a research report on Friday, August 19th. They set a neutral rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $5.00.




Geron Corp. (NASDAQ:GERN) traded down 1.77% during trading on Monday, reaching $2.22. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 880,284 shares. The stock’s market capitalization is $353.30 million. Geron Corp. has a 52 week low of $1.81 and a 52 week high of $5.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $2.13 and a 200 day moving average of $2.55.

Geron Corp. (NASDAQ:GERN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.04. The company earned $5.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.22 million. Geron Corp. had a negative return on equity of 21.96% and a negative net margin of 469.51%. The company’s revenue was down 85.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.17 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Geron Corp. will post ($0.19) EPS for the current year.

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GERN. Bellevue Group AG acquired a new position in shares of Geron Corp. during the first quarter worth about $131,000. A.R.T. Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Geron Corp. by 59.0% in the first quarter. A.R.T. Advisors LLC now owns 661,334 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,931,000 after buying an additional 245,500 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can acquired a new position in shares of Geron Corp. during the second quarter worth about $108,000. BlackRock Fund Advisors boosted its position in shares of Geron Corp. by 0.5% in the first quarter.

BlackRock Fund Advisors now owns 6,128,897 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $17,896,000 after buying an additional 32,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of Geron Corp. by 25.1% in the second quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 170,200 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $456,000 after buying an additional 34,200 shares in the last quarter. 38.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Geron Corp.

Geron Corporation (Geron) is a biopharmaceutical company, which supports the clinical stage development of a telomerase inhibitor, Imetelstat, in hematologic myeloid malignancies by Janssen Biotech, Inc (Janssen). The Company operates through the segment, which includes discovery and development of therapeutic products for oncology.






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