Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Shares Down 5.3% – Here’s Why

Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL)’s share price was down 5.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $37.80 and last traded at $37.09. Approximately 233,029 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 2,074,193 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.16.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on EXEL. Bank of America downgraded shares of Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $35.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Exelixis from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $29.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Exelixis from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.24.

Exelixis Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $10.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $35.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.21.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biotechnology company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.03). Exelixis had a net margin of 24.04% and a return on equity of 23.52%. On average, analysts predict that Exelixis, Inc. will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Mary C. Beckerle sold 12,210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.88, for a total value of $425,884.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 30,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,060,561.28. This represents a 28.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.80, for a total value of $388,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 341,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,231,886.40. The trade was a 2.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 140,343 shares of company stock valued at $5,177,234. Company insiders own 2.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelixis

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EXEL. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,429,252 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $979,994,000 after buying an additional 121,750 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management grew its stake in shares of Exelixis by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 8,169,847 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $272,056,000 after acquiring an additional 67,470 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Exelixis by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,630,940 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $254,110,000 after purchasing an additional 708,312 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Exelixis by 308.1% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,975,241 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $132,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,001,204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Exelixis by 25.7% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,967,005 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $132,101,000 after buying an additional 810,857 shares in the last quarter. 85.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exelixis Company Profile

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.