Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised Arbutus Biopharma from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Arbutus Biopharma presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $5.00.

Arbutus Biopharma Stock Performance

Arbutus Biopharma stock opened at $4.67 on Friday. Arbutus Biopharma has a fifty-two week low of $3.31 and a fifty-two week high of $5.38. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.42. The stock has a market cap of $923.96 million, a PE ratio of 5.91 and a beta of 0.64.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.01). Arbutus Biopharma had a net margin of 84.22% and a return on equity of 90.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.70 million.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arbutus Biopharma

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Man Group plc purchased a new stake in Arbutus Biopharma during the second quarter worth about $2,273,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Arbutus Biopharma in the second quarter valued at about $2,867,000. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Arbutus Biopharma in the second quarter valued at about $6,087,000. Whitefort Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $75,812,453,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $11,837,000. Institutional investors own 43.79% of the company’s stock.

Arbutus Biopharma Company Profile

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.