Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARWR)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $13.97, but opened at $15.75. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $15.56, with a volume of 844,732 shares.

The biotechnology company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $2.81. The firm had revenue of $542.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.27 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($1.02) earnings per share.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARWR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their target price on Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price objective (down from $51.00) on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 14th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Chardan Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.13.

Insider Activity at Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

In other Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Christopher Richard Anzalone sold 50,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.49, for a total value of $583,692.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,921,255 shares in the company, valued at $45,055,219.95. The trade was a 1.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 275,880 shares of company stock valued at $4,034,037. 4.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ARWR. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 297.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,175 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,628 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 72.3% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,978 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 134.3% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,401 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 2,523 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.61% of the company’s stock.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 6.09, a quick ratio of 6.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.27. The company has a 50 day moving average of $13.33 and a 200-day moving average of $17.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.96 and a beta of 0.89.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.