Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 3,017,008 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 62% from the previous session’s volume of 1,862,963 shares.The stock last traded at $32.9480 and had previously closed at $30.39.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALKS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group set a $56.00 price target on Alkermes and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Zacks Research upgraded Alkermes from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Alkermes in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alkermes from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Alkermes from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alkermes has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.83.

Alkermes Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.30 billion, a PE ratio of 15.85, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.32.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.08. Alkermes had a return on equity of 21.81% and a net margin of 22.27%.The business had revenue of $394.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $355.23 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.73 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Alkermes has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.360-1.470 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Alkermes plc will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alkermes

In other news, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 9,000 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.38, for a total transaction of $273,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 69,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,118,701.20. The trade was a 11.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alkermes

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in Alkermes by 163.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Alkermes by 395.6% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 989 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 3,908.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 524,795 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,744,000 after buying an additional 511,702 shares during the period. Atle Fund Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Atle Fund Management AB now owns 252,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,586,000 after buying an additional 25,651 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 122,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,666,000 after buying an additional 955 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.21% of the company’s stock.

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.