Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Buy”

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Saturday.

EXEL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Truist Financial set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Zacks Research raised shares of Exelixis from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group set a $41.00 price target on shares of Exelixis in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Exelixis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.11.

Exelixis Stock Up 2.9%

NASDAQ EXEL opened at $43.92 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.95. Exelixis has a twelve month low of $32.38 and a twelve month high of $49.62. The company has a market capitalization of $11.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.86, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.42.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The biotechnology company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $598.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $609.17 million. Exelixis had a return on equity of 36.29% and a net margin of 33.73%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Exelixis will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exelixis

In related news, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 28,043 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.58, for a total value of $1,194,070.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 374,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,926,154.82. This trade represents a 6.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold 72,230 shares of company stock worth $3,046,923 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exelixis

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in EXEL. Farallon Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Exelixis by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 19,501,500 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $805,412,000 after purchasing an additional 3,466,000 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Exelixis by 1,230.8% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,195,971 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $131,994,000 after buying an additional 2,955,813 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Exelixis during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $122,099,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 120.5% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 3,047,222 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $134,306,000 after acquiring an additional 1,665,110 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 42.9% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,262,643 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $231,951,000 after acquiring an additional 1,580,567 shares during the period. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Exelixis Company Profile

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.