Lazard Asset Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) by 80.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 214,462 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 95,315 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.08% of Exelixis worth $7,140,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exelixis during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $234,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Exelixis by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 124,905 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,160,000 after buying an additional 1,558 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Exelixis during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,162,000. Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Exelixis by 41.9% during the 4th quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 427,855 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $14,248,000 after buying an additional 126,375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Exelixis by 81.2% during the 4th quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 19,821 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $660,000 after buying an additional 8,883 shares in the last quarter. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on EXEL shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Exelixis in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Exelixis in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Exelixis from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $41.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Exelixis from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Exelixis from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Exelixis currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.12.

Insider Activity at Exelixis

In related news, Director Mary C. Beckerle sold 12,210 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.88, for a total transaction of $425,884.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 30,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,060,561.28. This trade represents a 28.65% 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 Dana Aftab sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.00, for a total transaction of $58,812.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 693,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,034,059. This trade represents a 0.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 141,851 shares of company stock valued at $5,236,046. Insiders own 2.82% of the company’s stock.

Exelixis Stock Up 20.8%

EXEL opened at $44.65 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $12.30 billion, a PE ratio of 25.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.25. Exelixis, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.14 and a 52 week high of $45.29. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.56.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biotechnology company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.03). Exelixis had a net margin of 24.04% and a return on equity of 23.52%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Exelixis, Inc. will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Exelixis 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.