Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) Stock Price Up 6% – Time to Buy?

Arbutus Biopharma Corporation (NASDAQ:ABUS) shot up 6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $4.72 and last traded at $4.8950. 471,183 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 52% from the average session volume of 983,403 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.62.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on ABUS shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Arbutus Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. Finally, Chardan Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $5.00 price objective on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a report on Friday, November 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $5.00.

Arbutus Biopharma Trading Up 4.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $929.31 million, a P/E ratio of -21.03 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $4.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $4.02.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.01. Arbutus Biopharma had a negative net margin of 289.79% and a negative return on equity of 50.26%. The firm had revenue of $0.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 million. Analysts predict that Arbutus Biopharma Corporation will post -0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arbutus Biopharma

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in Arbutus Biopharma by 173.3% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,655,738 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,269,000 after acquiring an additional 1,684,110 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 290.3% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,075,948 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,245,000 after acquiring an additional 1,544,070 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its position in Arbutus Biopharma by 63.5% during the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 2,575,941 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $7,960,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,000 shares during the period. Two Seas Capital LP boosted its holdings in Arbutus Biopharma by 10.3% in the second quarter. Two Seas Capital LP now owns 10,443,317 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $32,270,000 after purchasing an additional 977,361 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Arbutus Biopharma by 161.4% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,197,655 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,701,000 after purchasing an additional 739,429 shares during the last quarter. 43.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Arbutus Biopharma

Arbutus Biopharma Corporation is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering, developing and advancing a cure for chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. The company’s pipeline features both direct-acting antivirals and host-targeting therapies designed to reduce viral load and restore immune function. Lead programs include an RNA interference (RNAi) candidate aimed at silencing viral gene expression and next-generation capsid assembly modulators that seek to inhibit viral replication at its core.

In addition to its antiviral portfolio, Arbutus leverages proprietary lipid nanoparticle (LNP) delivery technology to optimize the distribution and cellular uptake of nucleic acid therapeutics.