Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) Trading Up 5.7% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Arbutus Biopharma Co. (NASDAQ:ABUS) shot up 5.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $4.08 and last traded at $4.08. 408,863 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average session volume of 1,126,618 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABUS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JMP Securities increased their target price on Arbutus Biopharma from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Arbutus Biopharma from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Arbutus Biopharma from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arbutus Biopharma has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $5.25.

Arbutus Biopharma Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $777.51 million, a PE ratio of -9.36 and a beta of 1.91. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $3.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3.46.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 million. Arbutus Biopharma had a negative return on equity of 66.68% and a negative net margin of 766.20%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.10) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Arbutus Biopharma Co. will post -0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Arbutus Biopharma by 19.7% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 349,435 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $902,000 after purchasing an additional 57,390 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arbutus Biopharma during the 1st quarter worth approximately $266,000. Verus Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 30.5% during the 1st quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 41,935 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 9,800 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 22.4% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 36,388 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 6,649 shares during the period. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Arbutus Biopharma by 12.7% in the first quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 436,506 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,126,000 after acquiring an additional 49,265 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.79% of the company’s stock.

Arbutus Biopharma Company Profile

Arbutus Biopharma Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops novel therapeutics for chronic Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the United States. Its HBV product pipeline consists of imdusiran (AB-729), a proprietary subcutaneously-delivered RNAi therapeutic product candidate that suppresses all HBV antigens, including HBsAg expression.