HC Wainwright Reaffirms Buy Rating for Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS)

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at HC Wainwright in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $5.00 target price on the biopharmaceutical company's stock. HC Wainwright's target price points to a potential upside of 32.63% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on ABUS. Chardan Capital boosted their target price on shares of Arbutus Biopharma from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of Arbutus Biopharma to $5.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised shares of Arbutus Biopharma from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Arbutus Biopharma from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arbutus Biopharma presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $5.38.

Arbutus Biopharma Stock Down 3.8 %

Arbutus Biopharma stock traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $3.77. 732,123 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,112,489. The stock has a market cap of $711.70 million, a P/E ratio of -8.71 and a beta of 1.92. The stock's fifty day moving average is $4.04 and its 200-day moving average is $3.57. Arbutus Biopharma has a 12 month low of $1.70 and a 12 month high of $4.72.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $1.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.74 million. Arbutus Biopharma had a negative net margin of 766.20% and a negative return on equity of 66.68%. On average, equities analysts predict that Arbutus Biopharma will post -0.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arbutus Biopharma

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABUS. Rubric Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Arbutus Biopharma during the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,195,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 21.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 493,729 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,526,000 after acquiring an additional 86,104 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 436,506 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,126,000 after acquiring an additional 49,265 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in Arbutus Biopharma by 6.1% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 354,813 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,100,000 after purchasing an additional 20,548 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Arbutus Biopharma by 19.7% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 349,435 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $902,000 after buying an additional 57,390 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.