Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) Shares Cross Above 200-Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Shares of Arbutus Biopharma Corporation (NASDAQ:ABUS) passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $4.16 and traded as high as $4.23. Arbutus Biopharma shares last traded at $4.06, with a volume of 1,139,145 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on ABUS. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Arbutus Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 15th. Finally, Chardan Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $5.00 price objective on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a research report on Friday, November 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $5.00.

Arbutus Biopharma Stock Down 2.4%

The company has a market cap of $780.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.65 and a beta of 0.70. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.17.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $0.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Arbutus Biopharma Corporation will post -0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arbutus Biopharma

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ABUS. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 38,959 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $177,000 after acquiring an additional 3,280 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 59,350 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 3,540 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in Arbutus Biopharma by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 211,784 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $961,000 after buying an additional 3,979 shares during the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Arbutus Biopharma by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 88,454 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 5,590 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Arbutus Biopharma by 5.1% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 124,486 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $385,000 after purchasing an additional 6,089 shares during the period. 43.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.