Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Strong-Buy”

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Barclays lowered Exelixis from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $25.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Exelixis in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Exelixis from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $26.13.

Exelixis Stock Performance

NASDAQ EXEL traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $22.53. 1,569,014 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,168,222. The business’s 50-day moving average is $21.86 and its 200-day moving average is $22.34. Exelixis has a twelve month low of $18.64 and a twelve month high of $24.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.56.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $425.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $461.04 million. Exelixis had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 8.85%. Exelixis’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.12 EPS. Analysts predict that Exelixis will post 1.15 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exelixis

In other Exelixis news, Director Jack L. Wyszomierski sold 10,923 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.37, for a total value of $233,424.51. Following the sale, the director now owns 338,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,243,318.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Jack L. Wyszomierski sold 10,923 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.37, for a total transaction of $233,424.51. Following the sale, the director now owns 338,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,243,318.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director David Edward Johnson acquired 225,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $20.76 per share, for a total transaction of $4,671,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,525,730 shares in the company, valued at $31,674,154.80. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 30,896 shares of company stock valued at $660,677. 2.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exelixis

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Exelixis by 232.6% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 728 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Exelixis during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Exelixis during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Exelixis during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas raised its position in Exelixis by 1,548.0% during the 4th quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 2,060 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.27% of the company’s stock.

About Exelixis

Exelixis, Inc, an oncology company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of new medicines for difficult-to-treat cancers in the United States. The company offers CABOMETYX tablets for the treatment of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma who received prior anti-angiogenic therapy; and COMETRIQ capsules for the treatment of progressive and metastatic medullary thyroid cancer.