Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on the stock from $40.00 to $52.00. The stock had previously closed at $33.69, but opened at $34.41. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a buy rating on the stock. Alkermes shares last traded at $34.25, with a volume of 138,247 shares.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on ALKS. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alkermes from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group raised Alkermes from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $21.00 to $38.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Alkermes from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Alkermes in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.38.

Insider Transactions at Alkermes

In related news, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 144,419 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.53, for a total transaction of $5,131,207.07. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,056,298.75. This represents a 71.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alkermes

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Alkermes in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alkermes by 106.2% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 842 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Alkermes by 2,231.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,629 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Alkermes by 558.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 2,502 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Alkermes in the fourth quarter valued at about $98,000. 95.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alkermes Stock Up 1.7 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.20. The stock has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.78, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.62.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.11. Alkermes had a return on equity of 30.80% and a net margin of 23.57%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Alkermes plc will post 1.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Alkermes

Alkermes plc, a biopharmaceutical company, researches, develops, and commercializes pharmaceutical products to address unmet medical needs of patients in therapeutic areas in the United States, Ireland, and internationally. It has a portfolio of proprietary commercial products for the treatment of alcohol dependence, opioid dependence, schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder and a pipeline of clinical and preclinical product candidates in development for neurological disorders.