Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:ARWR)

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARWR) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders bought 5,093 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 132% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,196 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ARWR shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $48.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Chardan Capital increased their target price on shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America upped their price target on Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $62.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals from $52.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $71.89.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 7.2%

NASDAQ ARWR opened at $65.69 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $56.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 4.86 and a current ratio of 4.86. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $9.57 and a twelve month high of $76.76. The stock has a market cap of $8.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -821.02 and a beta of 1.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals news, Director Mauro Ferrari sold 7,530 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $527,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 69,053 shares in the company, valued at $4,833,710. This represents a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Richard Anzalone sold 13,187 shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.10, for a total value of $871,660.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 3,792,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $250,700,047.90. This trade represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 510,836 shares of company stock worth $33,603,060. Company insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals by 75.9% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,032 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 1,308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.61% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple firms raised price targets (Goldman Sachs to $85, Morgan Stanley to $81, Chardan to $80), signaling renewed analyst optimism about Arrowhead’s prospects and giving the share price directional upside. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Arrowhead released interim Phase 1/2a obesity data showing meaningful fat reductions and a combination result that nearly doubled four‑month weight loss with tirzepatide — news that triggered investor interest and bullish media coverage. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call‑option activity and earlier intraday spikes indicate speculative/bullish positioning around the obesity data. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts and commentators flagged small sample sizes and incomplete datasets in the obesity update, meaning clinical significance and reproducibility remain uncertain until larger cohorts and full data are published. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Arrowhead filed to sell $500M of convertible senior notes due 2032 and $200M of common stock — a material capital raise that raises dilution and financing‑cost concerns for equity holders. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sales by senior executives (multiple recent Form 4 filings showing significant share disposals) are adding to market concern about near‑term selling pressure. Article Title

About Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals

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.