Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Time to Buy?

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Monday . 984,321 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 30% from the previous session’s volume of 1,407,312 shares.The stock last traded at $56.5950 and had previously closed at $56.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on XENE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $66.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, HC Wainwright boosted their target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $53.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xenon Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.88.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.4%

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $48.58 and its 200-day moving average is $44.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.22 and a beta of 0.74.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.31) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.20) by ($0.11). During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.84) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. will post -3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 270,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.33, for a total transaction of $16,289,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,000 shares in the company, valued at $361,980. This represents a 97.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrea Difabio sold 2,607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.11, for a total transaction of $156,706.77. Following the transaction, the insider owned 4,893 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $294,118.23. This represents a 34.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 296,707 shares of company stock worth $17,845,365 in the last three months. 4.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 450.0% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,100 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,125,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Finally, ADAR1 Capital Management LLC increased its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC now owns 203,969 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,142,000 after acquiring an additional 14,871 shares during the period. 95.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical?stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel, small?molecule drugs targeting ion channels in the central and peripheral nervous system. The company’s research focus centers on neurological and pain disorders—including epilepsy, migraine, and neuropathic pain—by modulating key ion?channel proteins to restore normal neuronal function. Xenon’s scientific platform draws upon advances in ion?channel biology and structure?based drug design to identify and optimize therapeutic candidates with the potential for improved safety and efficacy profiles compared with existing treatments.

The company’s pipeline comprises multiple preclinical and clinical programs.