Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) Rating Increased to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on ABUS. JMP Securities increased their price target on Arbutus Biopharma from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a market outperform rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $5.00 target price on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Chardan Capital reissued a buy rating and issued a $4.00 price target on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th.

Arbutus Biopharma Price Performance

Shares of ABUS stock opened at $3.62 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $3.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.02. Arbutus Biopharma has a 12 month low of $1.69 and a 12 month high of $3.98. The company has a market capitalization of $683.38 million, a PE ratio of -8.23 and a beta of 1.96.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 million. Arbutus Biopharma had a negative net margin of 766.20% and a negative return on equity of 66.68%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.10) EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Arbutus Biopharma will post -0.38 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arbutus Biopharma

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma during the first quarter worth about $266,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Arbutus Biopharma by 19.7% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 349,435 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $902,000 after acquiring an additional 57,390 shares in the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 12.7% during the first quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 436,506 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,126,000 after purchasing an additional 49,265 shares during the last quarter. Walleye Trading LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arbutus Biopharma during the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 46,172 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 6,117 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.79% of the company’s stock.

About Arbutus Biopharma

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.