11,492 Shares in Exelixis, Inc. $EXEL Bought by Waddell & Associates LLC

Waddell & Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 11,492 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $504,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in Exelixis by 500.0% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 600 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management bought a new position in Exelixis during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in Exelixis by 1,380.4% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 829 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 773 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Exelixis during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Exelixis in the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors own 85.27% of the company’s stock.

Exelixis Trading Up 2.4%

Exelixis stock opened at $52.99 on Wednesday. Exelixis, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.76 and a 1 year high of $53.28. The company has a market cap of $13.32 billion, a PE ratio of 17.60, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.41. The company’s 50-day moving average is $47.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.68.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.12. Exelixis had a net margin of 35.08% and a return on equity of 39.89%. The company had revenue of $610.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $607.51 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.55 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Exelixis, Inc. will post 3.16 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EXEL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Exelixis in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Exelixis from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen raised Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Exelixis from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Exelixis from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.35.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Dana Aftab sold 43,451 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.35, for a total value of $2,187,757.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 594,741 shares in the company, valued at $29,945,209.35. This trade represents a 6.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 32,110 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.81, for a total value of $1,599,399.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 357,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,813,948.78. The trade was a 8.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 219,170 shares of company stock worth $10,620,641 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Exelixis 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.