Affinity Asset Advisors LLC Increases Position in Alkermes plc $ALKS

Affinity Asset Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) by 35.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,350,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 350,000 shares during the quarter. Alkermes comprises 2.5% of Affinity Asset Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC owned about 0.81% of Alkermes worth $47,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new stake in Alkermes in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alkermes in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Alkermes by 57.6% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in Alkermes by 115.6% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,244 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in Alkermes by 1,041.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 1,208 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALKS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on Alkermes from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Alkermes from $44.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Alkermes from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alkermes currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.50.

Alkermes Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of ALKS stock opened at $52.89 on Friday. Alkermes plc has a 12 month low of $25.17 and a 12 month high of $55.67. The company has a market cap of $8.82 billion, a PE ratio of 58.77 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50 day moving average is $46.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.44.

Insider Activity at Alkermes

In related news, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 9,000 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.51, for a total value of $463,590.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 73,389 shares in the company, valued at $3,780,267.39. This trade represents a 10.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Christopher I. Wright sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.10, for a total transaction of $90,200.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,158,168. This trade represents a 7.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 35,102 shares of company stock worth $1,494,410. 4.59% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Alkermes Company Profile

Alkermes plc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative medicines to address unmet needs in the central nervous system (CNS). The company applies its proprietary drug delivery technologies and therapeutic expertise to advance treatments for addiction, schizophrenia, bipolar I disorder and depression. Alkermes’ portfolio includes both commercial products and a pipeline of investigational therapies designed to improve patient outcomes and support long-term disease management.

Alkermes’ commercial franchise features several approved products.