Xencor (NASDAQ:XNCR) Shares Up 7.8% on Strong Earnings

Shares of Xencor, Inc. (NASDAQ:XNCR) shot up 7.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $15.62 and last traded at $15.50. 62,648 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 485,598 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.38.

The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.62) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.81) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $52.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.14 million. Xencor had a negative return on equity of 30.92% and a negative net margin of 232.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on XNCR. StockNews.com lowered Xencor from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Xencor from $37.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Xencor from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price on shares of Xencor in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised Xencor from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Alan Bruce Montgomery sold 1,421 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.03, for a total transaction of $38,409.63. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,140 shares in the company, valued at $247,054.20. This trade represents a 13.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in Xencor during the 4th quarter worth approximately $101,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Xencor in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Xencor in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,227,000. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Xencor by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 845,916 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $19,439,000 after purchasing an additional 2,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teza Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xencor in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $210,000.

Xencor Stock Up 2.5 %

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.64. The company has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of -4.80 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 6.23, a quick ratio of 6.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Xencor Company Profile

Xencor, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery and development of engineered monoclonal antibody and cytokine therapeutics to treat patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company provides Sotrovimab that targets the SARS-CoV-2 virus; Ultomiris for the treatment of patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria and atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome; and Monjuvi for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.