Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 3,076 Shares of Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) by 10.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,442 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,076 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Alkermes were worth $900,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ALKS. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new position in Alkermes during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Alkermes by 147.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Alkermes in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. bought a new position in Alkermes during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Alkermes during the third quarter worth approximately $53,000. Institutional investors own 95.21% of the company’s stock.

Alkermes Trading Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ ALKS opened at $24.68 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $27.30 and its 200 day moving average is $26.85. Alkermes plc has a twelve month low of $22.01 and a twelve month high of $33.71. The company has a quick ratio of 2.50, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 0.55.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $377.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $362.78 million. Alkermes had a return on equity of 16.10% and a net margin of 21.39%. Alkermes’s revenue was up 23.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.02) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Alkermes plc will post 2.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alkermes announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 15th that allows the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Alkermes

In other news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 10,417 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total transaction of $292,717.70. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 65,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,852,099.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 4.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALKS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group cut Alkermes from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $25.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on shares of Alkermes in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. TheStreet upgraded Alkermes from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Alkermes from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Friday, April 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.38.

About Alkermes

Alkermes plc, a biopharmaceutical company, researches, develops, and commercializes pharmaceutical products to address unmet medical needs of patients in therapeutic areas in the United States, Ireland, and internationally. It has a portfolio of proprietary commercial products for the treatment of alcohol dependence, opioid dependence, schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder and a pipeline of clinical and preclinical product candidates in development for neurological disorders.