Investors Purchase High Volume of Xenon Pharmaceuticals Put Options (NASDAQ:XENE)

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 4,063 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 2,362% compared to the typical daily volume of 165 put options.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:XENE opened at $38.50 on Thursday. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $35.53 and a 52 week high of $50.99. The company’s fifty day moving average is $39.45 and its 200-day moving average is $40.40. The company has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of -13.65 and a beta of 1.20.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on XENE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 price target on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Xenon Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $57.38.

Insider Activity at Xenon Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CFO Sherry Aulin sold 18,709 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.21, for a total transaction of $770,997.89. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 16,315 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.50, for a total transaction of $660,757.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 31,302 shares in the company, valued at $1,267,731. This trade represents a 34.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 62,383 shares of company stock valued at $2,535,891. 5.52% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,525,290 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $294,991,000 after purchasing an additional 607,606 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,843,447 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $151,317,000 after purchasing an additional 15,226 shares in the last quarter. Braidwell LP boosted its stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 2,913,964 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $114,227,000 after purchasing an additional 206,709 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,866,755 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $112,425,000 after purchasing an additional 314,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Polar Capital Holdings Plc raised its holdings in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 2,697,657 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $105,748,000 after buying an additional 253,012 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.45% of the company’s stock.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc, a neuroscience-focused biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of therapeutics to treat patients with neurological disorders in Canada. Its clinical development pipeline includes XEN1101, a novel and potent Kv7 potassium channel opener, which is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of epilepsy and other neurological disorders.