OP Asset Management Ltd Takes Position in Exelixis, Inc. $EXEL

OP Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 10,626 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $456,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of EXEL. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in Exelixis during the 1st quarter valued at about $249,000. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its holdings in Exelixis by 31.6% in the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 21,158 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $907,000 after buying an additional 5,076 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Exelixis by 39.2% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 50,495 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,166,000 after buying an additional 14,207 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its position in shares of Exelixis by 248.9% in the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 152,320 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $6,533,000 after buying an additional 108,662 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $192,000. 85.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Maria C. Freire sold 20,634 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $949,164.00. Following the sale, the director owned 100,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,637,674. The trade was a 16.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 32,110 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.81, for a total transaction of $1,599,399.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 357,638 shares in the company, valued at $17,813,948.78. This represents a 8.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 219,170 shares of company stock valued at $10,620,641 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on EXEL shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. HC Wainwright raised their price target on Exelixis from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Exelixis from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Exelixis from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Exelixis in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.87.

Exelixis Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EXEL opened at $54.41 on Wednesday. Exelixis, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.76 and a 52-week high of $55.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $49.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.71.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.12. Exelixis had a return on equity of 39.89% and a net margin of 35.08%.The company had revenue of $610.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $607.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Exelixis, Inc. will post 3.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Exelixis

Exelixis, Inc is a biotechnology company specializing in the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule therapies primarily for the treatment of cancer. Building on a platform that leverages model organism genetics and high-throughput screening, the company focuses its research on kinase inhibitors that modulate critical signaling pathways involved in tumor growth and metastasis. Exelixis’s translational research approach aims to advance novel compounds from early-stage discovery through clinical development and regulatory approval.

The company’s most recognized products include CABOMETYX® (cabozantinib), approved for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma and hepatocellular carcinoma, and COMETRIQ® (cabozantinib) for metastatic medullary thyroid cancer.