Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) Downgraded by StockNews.com

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Friday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $39.00 price target on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Alkermes in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group downgraded shares of Alkermes from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $25.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. TheStreet raised shares of Alkermes from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.38.

Alkermes Trading Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:ALKS opened at $24.05 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $26.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.73. The stock has a market cap of $4.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 3.20, a quick ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Alkermes has a 12 month low of $22.01 and a 12 month high of $33.71.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $350.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $360.26 million. Alkermes had a return on equity of 20.31% and a net margin of 25.17%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.10) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Alkermes will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Alkermes declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 15th that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Alkermes

In related news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 10,417 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total transaction of $292,717.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 65,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,852,099.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 4.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alkermes

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Alkermes by 52.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,746,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $329,028,000 after acquiring an additional 4,055,926 shares during the period. RTW Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 338.8% during the fourth quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 3,901,523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,228,000 after purchasing an additional 3,012,450 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Alkermes by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,955,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $581,304,000 after purchasing an additional 2,288,185 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Alkermes during the 4th quarter valued at $55,548,000. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Alkermes during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,171,000. 95.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alkermes Company Profile

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.