Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 64,051 Shares of Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL)

Renaissance Technologies LLC decreased its position in shares of Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,295,865 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 64,051 shares during the quarter. Exelixis accounts for approximately 0.8% of Renaissance Technologies LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 5.36% of Exelixis worth $509,352,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of EXEL. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 4.0% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 35,430 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $919,000 after purchasing an additional 1,368 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Exelixis by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 123,347 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,200,000 after buying an additional 1,201 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $421,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $306,000. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in shares of Exelixis by 9.9% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 22,958 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $596,000 after acquiring an additional 2,077 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.27% of the company’s stock.

Exelixis Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of EXEL stock opened at $34.84 on Tuesday. Exelixis, Inc. has a 12-month low of $20.14 and a 12-month high of $40.02. The company has a market cap of $9.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.57. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.70.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 23.52% and a net margin of 24.04%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Exelixis, Inc. will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EXEL. Citigroup increased their target price on Exelixis from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group upped their price target on Exelixis from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Exelixis from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, February 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Exelixis from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Bank of America cut Exelixis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $35.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.59.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Exelixis news, Director Mary C. Beckerle sold 12,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was 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 approximately $1,060,561.28. This trade represents a 28.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.80, for a total transaction of $388,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 341,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,231,886.40. This represents a 2.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 140,343 shares of company stock worth $5,177,234. 2.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Exelixis

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.