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

Key Points

• Arbutus Biopharma has been upgraded from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating increased confidence from analysts.
• The company recently reported earnings of $0.01 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations of a loss, along with revenue of $10.74 million for the quarter.
• Institutional ownership of Arbutus Biopharma's stock stands at 43.79%, with significant increases in holdings from various hedge funds during the fourth quarter.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday morning.

Arbutus Biopharma Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of Arbutus Biopharma stock traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $3.40. The stock had a trading volume of 423,647 shares, compared to its average volume of 868,520. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $3.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3.31. Arbutus Biopharma has a 12-month low of $2.70 and a 12-month high of $4.72. The firm has a market cap of $650.82 million, a P/E ratio of -11.71 and a beta of 0.86.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.03. Arbutus Biopharma had a negative net margin of 352.24% and a negative return on equity of 59.28%. The firm had revenue of $10.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Arbutus Biopharma will post -0.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arbutus Biopharma

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABUS. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 173.3% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,655,738 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $9,269,000 after acquiring an additional 1,684,110 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Arbutus Biopharma by 290.3% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,075,948 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $7,245,000 after buying an additional 1,544,070 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Arbutus Biopharma by 900.4% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 896,258 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,931,000 after buying an additional 806,672 shares in the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP lifted its holdings in Arbutus Biopharma by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Two Seas Capital LP now owns 9,465,956 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $33,036,000 after buying an additional 725,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in Arbutus Biopharma by 110.2% during the 2nd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 982,527 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,036,000 after buying an additional 515,144 shares in the last quarter. 43.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.