Anavex Life Sciences (NASDAQ:AVXL) Stock Price Down 4.9% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (NASDAQ:AVXL) were down 4.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $9.05 and last traded at $8.89. Approximately 87,419 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 1,126,738 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AVXL shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Anavex Life Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 23rd. D. Boral Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Jones Trading restated a “hold” rating on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a research note on Friday. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Anavex Life Sciences in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Anavex Life Sciences has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.00.

Anavex Life Sciences Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $9.20 and a 200 day moving average of $9.36. The company has a market capitalization of $739.55 million, a P/E ratio of -15.11 and a beta of 0.83.

Anavex Life Sciences (NASDAQ:AVXL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.03). Research analysts anticipate that Anavex Life Sciences Corp. will post -0.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Anavex Life Sciences

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVXL. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Anavex Life Sciences during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Anavex Life Sciences by 470.0% during the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 4,879 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 4,023 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Anavex Life Sciences by 22.3% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 8,535 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 1,559 shares during the period. Kovack Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Anavex Life Sciences during the second quarter valued at about $93,000. Finally, Weaver Consulting Group bought a new stake in Anavex Life Sciences during the second quarter valued at about $94,000. 31.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Anavex Life Sciences

Anavex Life Sciences Corp., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of therapeutics for the treatment of central nervous system diseases. Its lead product candidate is ANAVEX 2-73 for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, as well as other central nervous system diseases, including rare diseases, such as Rett syndrome, a rare severe neurological monogenic disorder; and infantile spasms, Fragile X syndrome, and Angelman syndrome.