Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR) Reaches New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade
by Sarita Garza · The Markets DailyShares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARWR – Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $100.00 to $120.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals traded as high as $88.11 and last traded at $88.4960, with a volume of 343079 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $74.52.
Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on ARWR. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Leerink Partners increased their price target on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $61.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $93.83.
Read Our Latest Research Report on ARWR
Insider Transactions at Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals
In related news, Director Hongbo Lu sold 2,970 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.88, for a total transaction of $228,333.60. Following the sale, the director owned 52,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,998,682.56. This represents a 5.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.
More Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals News
Here are the key news stories impacting Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Arrowhead reported topline Phase 3 SHASTA-3 and SHASTA-4 results for plozasiran, with both studies meeting the primary endpoint of triglyceride reduction versus placebo; the drug also showed meaningful reductions in acute pancreatitis risk, which investors view as a major de-risking event. Article Title
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts responded favorably to the data, with Piper Sandler reaffirming an overweight rating and raising its price target to $126, and Morgan Stanley lifting its target to $120, reinforcing expectations for further upside if commercialization progresses. Article Title
- Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighted Arrowhead’s stock move to a new 52-week high and described the plozasiran win as a validation of the company’s late-stage pipeline, with some commentary suggesting broader FDA approval and expanded commercialization potential. Article Title
- Neutral Sentiment: Additional reports noted that Arrowhead’s ARO-033 first-in-human trial showed early safety progress, which is constructive for the pipeline but less immediately important than the plozasiran catalyst. Article Title
- Negative Sentiment: No major negative company-specific news was provided in the recent items, though one market note flagged that the stock’s valuation has run up sharply, which could make further gains more dependent on execution and regulatory follow-through. Article Title
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 3,142.5% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,081,689 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $71,797,000 after acquiring an additional 2,017,489 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $113,159,000. Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its holdings in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 497.4% in the 4th quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 1,832,997 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $121,693,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,164 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at $64,988,000. Finally, Deerfield Management Company L.P. bought a new position in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $34,249,000. 62.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.2%
The stock has a market cap of $12.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -40.36 and a beta of 1.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $77.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 6.23 and a quick ratio of 6.23.
Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ARWR – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.93) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.10) by $0.17. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 55.09% and a negative net margin of 48.38%.The company had revenue of $73.74 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $73.84 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.75 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 86.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.09 EPS for the current year.
Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Company Profile
Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics. Since its founding in 2008, Arrowhead has leveraged its proprietary delivery platform—known internally as the Advanced RNAi Compound (ARC) technology—to silence disease-causing genes in patients suffering from genetically defined diseases. The company’s approach aims to offer durable, targeted treatments across a range of therapeutic areas.
The company’s pipeline includes multiple candidates in various stages of development.