Anavex Life Sciences (NASDAQ:AVXL) Trading 17.7% Higher - Here's What Happened

Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (NASDAQ:AVXL - Get Free Report) shares were up 17.7% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $12.95 and last traded at $13.15. Approximately 1,097,797 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 7% from the average daily volume of 1,186,202 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.17.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AVXL shares. D. Boral Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a report on Monday, April 7th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $42.00 target price on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a report on Monday, April 7th.

Anavex Life Sciences Stock Down 4.8%

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.05 and a beta of 0.72. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $9.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.12.

Anavex Life Sciences (NASDAQ:AVXL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 13th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.03. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.13) earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Anavex Life Sciences Corp. will post -0.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Anavex Life Sciences

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 11.9% in the second quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,700 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $182,000 after purchasing an additional 2,100 shares during the last quarter. PVG Asset Management Corp increased its holdings in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 5.2% in the first quarter. PVG Asset Management Corp now owns 82,608 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 4,118 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 10.7% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 50,525 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $434,000 after acquiring an additional 4,869 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 70.8% in the first quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 127,454 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,094,000 after acquiring an additional 52,853 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 17.9% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 187,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,604,000 after acquiring an additional 28,326 shares during the period. 31.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Anavex Life Sciences Company Profile

Anavex Life Sciences Corp., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of therapeutics for the treatment of central nervous system diseases. Its lead product candidate is ANAVEX 2-73 for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, as well as other central nervous system diseases, including rare diseases, such as Rett syndrome, a rare severe neurological monogenic disorder; and infantile spasms, Fragile X syndrome, and Angelman syndrome.