Anavex Life Sciences Corp. $AVXL Shares Purchased by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Anavex Life Sciences by 70.8%, acquiring an additional 52,853 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 127,454 shares valued at $1,094,000.
• In the first quarter, several hedge funds, including Vanguard Group Inc. and Private Advisor Group LLC, also increased their stakes, pushing institutional ownership of AVXL to 31.55%.
• Analyst ratings for Anavex Life Sciences vary, with Wall Street Zen downgrading the stock to a "sell" while other firms like D. Boral Capital maintain a "buy" rating with a target price of $46.00.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (NASDAQ:AVXL - Free Report) by 70.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 127,454 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 52,853 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Anavex Life Sciences worth $1,094,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AVXL. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Anavex Life Sciences by 482.1% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 546,626 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $4,690,000 after acquiring an additional 452,723 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in 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 during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Anavex Life Sciences in the 1st quarter valued at $1,622,000. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in 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 during the period. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its stake in 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 during the period. 31.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on AVXL. D. Boral Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $46.00 price objective on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Anavex Life Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 23rd. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.00.

Anavex Life Sciences Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Anavex Life Sciences stock traded up $0.04 on Friday, hitting $9.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 701,998 shares, compared to its average volume of 905,578. Anavex Life Sciences Corp. has a 52-week low of $4.93 and a 52-week high of $14.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $10.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.29. The company has a market capitalization of $807.37 million, a P/E ratio of -16.49 and a beta of 0.83.

Anavex Life Sciences (NASDAQ:AVXL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by ($0.03). As a group, analysts expect that Anavex Life Sciences Corp. will post -0.69 earnings per share for the current year.

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.