Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at UBS Group

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR) was upgraded by equities research analysts at UBS Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup assumed coverage on Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $108.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. B. Riley Financial boosted their price target on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $101.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Chardan Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, August 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.07.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARWR traded down $2.60 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $55.90. 1,772,723 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,220,603. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -24.84 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s fifty day moving average is $75.53 and its 200-day moving average is $75.86. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $36.57 and a one year high of $95.49. The company has a quick ratio of 5.90, a current ratio of 5.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.36) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.23) by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $75.25 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.17 million. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 60.06% and a negative net margin of 47.79%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 171.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($1.26) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals will post -3.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael Perry sold 11,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.30, for a total value of $1,012,680.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 111,459 shares in the company, valued at $9,730,370.70. This trade represents a 9.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Adeoye Olukotun sold 2,000 shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.96, for a total value of $173,920.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 31,600 shares in the company, valued at $2,747,936. The trade was a 5.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at about $1,208,838,000. Siren L.L.C. grew its position in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Siren L.L.C. now owns 1,615,476 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $101,290,000 after buying an additional 115,000 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,436,990 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $90,119,000 after buying an additional 156,544 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 23.8% during the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,273,266 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $79,612,000 after buying an additional 244,530 shares during the period. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $99,623,000. 62.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals News

Here are the key news stories impacting Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Arrowhead reported interim Phase 1/2a results for ARO-MAPT, its investigational Alzheimer’s treatment. The drug reportedly crossed the blood-brain barrier and produced up to a 73% reduction in tau, a protein associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The results support the potential of Arrowhead’s TRiM platform for delivering RNA therapies into the central nervous system. Arrowhead Reports Positive Phase 1/2a Data for Alzheimer’s Candidate ARO-MAPT
• Positive Sentiment: UBS initiated coverage of ARWR with a Buy rating and a $109 price target, while Chardan Capital and HC Wainwright reiterated Buy ratings with targets of $115 and $120, respectively. The targets reflect analysts’ confidence in Arrowhead’s pipeline and potential long-term upside. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Receives a New Rating from UBS
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright projects Arrowhead could earn $9.61 per share in fiscal 2031, a sharp contrast with the expected loss of $3.62 per share for the current fiscal year. This highlights the firm’s view that commercialization of Arrowhead’s pipeline could significantly improve future profitability.
• Neutral Sentiment: The ARO-MAPT findings are interim, early-stage results and will require confirmation in larger, later-stage trials before they can support regulatory approval or commercial revenue.
• Negative Sentiment: After the initial data-driven surge, investors may be taking profits and reassessing valuation. Arrowhead remains unprofitable, recently missed quarterly EPS expectations, and faces substantial clinical, regulatory, and execution risks.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing medicines that silence disease-causing genes. Its research is based primarily on RNA interference (RNAi), a biological process that reduces the production of specific proteins by targeting messenger RNA before it can be used to make those proteins.

The company uses its proprietary Targeted RNAi Molecule (TRiM) platform to design and deliver RNAi therapeutics to selected tissues, including the liver and lungs.