Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR)

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAPR) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors acquired 15,741 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 36% compared to the typical volume of 11,557 call options.

Capricor Therapeutics Trading Up 6.2%

Shares of Capricor Therapeutics stock opened at $28.56 on Tuesday. Capricor Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $4.30 and a twelve month high of $40.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of -15.87 and a beta of 0.62. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $8.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.34.

Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.54) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.54). On average, sell-side analysts predict that Capricor Therapeutics will post -1.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on CAPR shares. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Capricor Therapeutics from $22.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Maxim Group increased their price target on shares of Capricor Therapeutics from $25.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Alliance Global Partners restated a “buy” rating on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Roth Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Capricor Therapeutics from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Industrial Alliance Securities set a $48.00 target price on shares of Capricor Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Capricor Therapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAPR. Octagon Capital Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Capricor Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at about $4,270,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Capricor Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,555,000. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in Capricor Therapeutics by 128.3% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 355,796 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,565,000 after acquiring an additional 199,959 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Capricor Therapeutics by 1,629.9% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 191,292 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,379,000 after acquiring an additional 180,234 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in Capricor Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,547,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.68% of the company’s stock.

Capricor Therapeutics Company Profile

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc (NASDAQ:CAPR) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of first-in-class biological therapeutics for the treatment of rare disorders. Capricor’s lead candidate, CAP-1002, is an allogeneic cell therapy that is currently in clinical development for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.