Insider Selling: Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) SVP Sells 18,669 Shares of Stock

Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) SVP Brenda Hefti sold 18,669 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.01, for a total value of $821,622.69. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 96,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,247,493.12. This trade represents a 16.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Exelixis Price Performance

Shares of EXEL stock traded up $0.39 on Wednesday, hitting $44.47. 3,267,412 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,563,792. The company’s fifty day moving average is $43.77 and its 200 day moving average is $41.13. Exelixis, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.38 and a 1-year high of $49.62. The company has a market capitalization of $11.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.05, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.42.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The biotechnology company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.20. Exelixis had a net margin of 33.73% and a return on equity of 36.29%. The firm had revenue of $598.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $609.17 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.55 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Exelixis, Inc. will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exelixis

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Exelixis by 95.1% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 599 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 500.0% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 600 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Exelixis during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Exelixis during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 85.27% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America lowered Exelixis from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, January 5th. Guggenheim downgraded Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. HC Wainwright increased their target price on Exelixis from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup cut Exelixis from a “market outperform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, UBS Group set a $41.00 price target on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Monday, January 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Exelixis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.11.

About Exelixis

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.