Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) Stock Price Down 2.8% - Time to Sell?

Arbutus Biopharma Corporation (NASDAQ:ABUS - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 2.8% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $3.26 and last traded at $3.25. 171,703 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 962,541 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.34.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABUS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Chardan Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $5.00 price objective on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a report on Friday, March 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Arbutus Biopharma from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $5.50.

Arbutus Biopharma Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $608.11 million, a P/E ratio of -7.72 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 6.01, a current ratio of 6.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $3.35 and a 200 day moving average of $3.33.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.54 million. Arbutus Biopharma had a negative net margin of 1,196.64% and a negative return on equity of 75.51%. Research analysts anticipate that Arbutus Biopharma Corporation will post -0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Arbutus Biopharma

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 69,831 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 3,780 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 9.1% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 76,031 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 6,371 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 78,894 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 6,614 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 42,144 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 6,644 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in Arbutus Biopharma by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 88,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $310,000 after acquiring an additional 7,235 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.

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