Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Earns Equal Weight Rating from Stephens

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating restated by analysts at Stephens in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $29.00 price target on the biotechnology company’s stock. Stephens’ price target suggests a potential downside of 15.92% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on EXEL. TD Cowen raised their target price on Exelixis from $27.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a report on Wednesday. Brookline Capital Management assumed coverage on shares of Exelixis in a report on Monday, December 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Exelixis from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded shares of Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $35.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.24.

Exelixis Stock Up 5.2 %

Shares of EXEL opened at $34.49 on Wednesday. Exelixis has a 52-week low of $20.14 and a 52-week high of $37.59. The stock has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a PE ratio of 22.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $34.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.75.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biotechnology company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.03). Exelixis had a net margin of 22.43% and a return on equity of 20.99%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Exelixis will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jeffrey Hessekiel sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.67, for a total transaction of $2,200,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 486,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,823,783.53. This trade represents a 10.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 10,000 shares of Exelixis stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.27, for a total transaction of $352,700.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 278,665 shares in the company, valued at $9,828,514.55. This trade represents a 3.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 111,588 shares of company stock worth $3,981,864 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelixis

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Exelixis by 113.8% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 27,908 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $929,000 after purchasing an additional 14,857 shares during the period. EAM Global Investors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Exelixis in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,615,000. EAM Investors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Exelixis in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,920,000. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Exelixis during the 4th quarter valued at about $207,000. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its position in Exelixis by 32.7% during the 4th quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 47,545 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,583,000 after purchasing an additional 11,722 shares during the period. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exelixis Company Profile

Exelixis, Inc, an oncology company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of new medicines for difficult-to-treat cancers in the United States. The company offers CABOMETYX tablets for the treatment of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma who received prior anti-angiogenic therapy; and COMETRIQ capsules for the treatment of progressive and metastatic medullary thyroid cancer.