Share Buyback Program Authorized by Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) Board

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Friday, August 21st, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the biopharmaceutical company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABUS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Arbutus Biopharma from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Arbutus Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5.00.

Arbutus Biopharma Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ABUS opened at $5.21 on Monday. Arbutus Biopharma has a 52 week low of $3.49 and a 52 week high of $5.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $4.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $4.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.59 and a beta of 0.64.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.01). Arbutus Biopharma had a net margin of 84.22% and a return on equity of 90.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.70 million.

Arbutus Biopharma Company Profile

Arbutus Biopharma Corporation is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering, developing and advancing a cure for chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. The company’s pipeline features both direct-acting antivirals and host-targeting therapies designed to reduce viral load and restore immune function. Lead programs include an RNA interference (RNAi) candidate aimed at silencing viral gene expression and next-generation capsid assembly modulators that seek to inhibit viral replication at its core.

In addition to its antiviral portfolio, Arbutus leverages proprietary lipid nanoparticle (LNP) delivery technology to optimize the distribution and cellular uptake of nucleic acid therapeutics.