Everence Capital Management Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS)

Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 8,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Emerald Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Alkermes in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in Alkermes during the second quarter worth about $27,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in Alkermes by 147.5% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Alkermes during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. purchased a new stake in Alkermes during the third quarter worth about $37,000. 95.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alkermes Stock Performance

Shares of ALKS opened at $23.76 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $27.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.03. The company has a quick ratio of 2.50, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.55. Alkermes plc has a 52-week low of $22.01 and a 52-week high of $33.71.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.29). The business had revenue of $377.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $362.78 million. Alkermes had a net margin of 21.39% and a return on equity of 16.10%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.02) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Alkermes plc will post 2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alkermes announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 15th that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Alkermes

In related news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 10,417 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total value of $292,717.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 65,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,852,099.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. TheStreet upgraded shares of Alkermes from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $39.00 price objective on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Alkermes from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Alkermes from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alkermes presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.25.

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.