Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) saw a large drop in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 13,290,000 shares, a drop of 17.7% from the February 13th total of 16,150,000 shares. Approximately 4.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,480,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.4 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on EXEL. Oppenheimer downgraded Exelixis from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $41.00 to $33.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays raised their price target on Exelixis from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Exelixis from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut Exelixis from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $36.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.59.

Exelixis Stock Performance

Shares of EXEL opened at $37.06 on Thursday. Exelixis has a 52-week low of $20.14 and a 52-week high of $40.02. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $35.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.71. The firm has a market cap of $10.37 billion, a PE ratio of 20.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.57.

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

Insider Transactions at Exelixis

In other Exelixis news, Director Jack L. Wyszomierski sold 8,768 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.80, for a total transaction of $331,430.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 356,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,479,669. This trade represents a 2.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mary C. Beckerle sold 12,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now directly owns 30,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,060,561.28. This represents a 28.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 140,343 shares of company stock valued at $5,177,234 in the last ninety days. 2.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelixis

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Exelixis in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 616.9% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 889 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 765 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in shares of Exelixis in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 62.8% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 967 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Exelixis in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.