Invesco Ltd. Cuts Stock Holdings in Anavex Life Sciences Corp. $AVXL

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. has reduced its stake in Anavex Life Sciences by 9.9%, selling 60,694 shares and holding about 554,354 shares valued at approximately $4.76 million.
• During the first quarter, several hedge funds significantly increased their positions in Anavex Life Sciences, with Private Advisor Group LLC boosting its holdings by 617.5%.
• Anavex Life Sciences reported an EPS of ($0.16) for the last quarter, missing the consensus estimate, and its shares are currently rated predominantly as buy by analysts.

Invesco Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (NASDAQ:AVXL - Free Report) by 9.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 554,354 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 60,694 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 0.65% of Anavex Life Sciences worth $4,756,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVXL. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,902,246 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $42,061,000 after buying an additional 221,802 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 617.5% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 214,725 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,842,000 after buying an additional 184,800 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Anavex Life Sciences in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,411,000. Arizona State Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Anavex Life Sciences in the 1st quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 197.7% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 248,139 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,129,000 after buying an additional 164,792 shares in the last quarter. 31.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Anavex Life Sciences Price Performance

AVXL traded down $0.16 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $9.48. 950,735 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 840,318. Anavex Life Sciences Corp. has a 1 year low of $4.93 and a 1 year high of $14.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $814.24 million, a P/E ratio of -16.63 and a beta of 0.83. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $10.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.27.

Anavex Life Sciences (NASDAQ:AVXL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.03). Equities analysts forecast that Anavex Life Sciences Corp. will post -0.69 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AVXL. D. Boral Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Anavex Life Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 23rd. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.00.

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.