Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $26.00 to $30.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the stock. Exelixis traded as high as $28.66 and last traded at $28.27, with a volume of 1640399 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $26.24.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on EXEL. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Friday, October 11th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Exelixis in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Exelixis from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Exelixis from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.07.

Insider Transactions at Exelixis

In related news, Director Maria C. Freire sold 8,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.56, for a total transaction of $219,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 91,007 shares in the company, valued at $2,417,145.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Maria C. Freire sold 8,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.56, for a total value of $219,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 91,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,417,145.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Dana Aftab sold 95,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.00, for a total value of $2,375,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 520,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,024,750. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 327,858 shares of company stock valued at $8,640,129 in the last quarter. 2.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Exelixis

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 232.6% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 728 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Exelixis during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new stake in Exelixis during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Exelixis by 107.9% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,006 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Exelixis by 537.2% in the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 2,071 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,746 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.27% of the company’s stock.

Exelixis Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $26.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.76. The company has a market cap of $8.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.54.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.44. The business had revenue of $637.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $468.21 million. Exelixis had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 17.38%. Equities analysts predict that Exelixis, Inc. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.