Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR) Reaches New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals shares reached a new 52-week high of $31.14, closing at $30.82 with a trading volume of 610,791 shares.
• A mix of analyst ratings reflects cautious optimism; while Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock to "hold," B. Riley upgraded it to "strong buy," with a high price target set at $80.00 by HC Wainwright.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of ($1.26) EPS, missing estimates, and generated revenues of $27.77 million, below the expected $29.01 million.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARWR - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $31.14 and last traded at $30.82, with a volume of 610791 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $29.13.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ARWR. TD Cowen raised Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Chardan Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. B. Riley raised shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.14.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 4.4%

The company's 50-day simple moving average is $21.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 4.87 and a quick ratio of 4.87. The firm has a market cap of $4.43 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.04 and a beta of 1.00.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.94) by ($0.32). The firm had revenue of $27.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $29.01 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.38) EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

In other Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals news, insider James C. Hamilton sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $450,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 232,122 shares in the company, valued at $6,963,660. The trade was a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold a total of 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,025,000 over the last ninety days. 4.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ARWR. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 138.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,785,062 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $60,962,000 after acquiring an additional 2,774,933 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 3,507.8% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,155,998 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $34,065,000 after purchasing an additional 2,096,238 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,414,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,202,562 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $168,201,000 after buying an additional 1,018,273 shares during the period. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 138.4% during the 1st quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,072,827 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $13,668,000 after buying an additional 622,752 shares in the last quarter. 62.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc develops medicines for the treatment of intractable diseases in the United States. The company's products in pipeline includes Plozasiran, which is in Phase 2b and one Phase 3 clinical trial to treat hypertriglyceridemia, mixed dyslipidemia, and chylomicronemia syndrome; Zodasiran that is in Phase 2b clinical trial for the treatment of dyslipidemia and hypertriglyceridemia; ARO-PNPLA3, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial to treat patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis; ARO-RAGE that is in Phase 1/2a clinical trial to treat inflammatory pulmonary conditions; and ARO-MUC5AC, which is in Phase 1/2a clinical trial to treat muco-obstructive pulmonary diseases.