Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) Receives Outperform Rating from Royal Bank Of Canada

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reissued by stock analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price target indicates a potential upside of 37.09% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on ALKS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Alkermes from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $63.00 target price (up from $45.00) on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Alkermes from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Alkermes from $44.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.47.

Alkermes Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ALKS traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $40.85. 2,292,914 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,142,522. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 107.50 and a beta of 0.31. Alkermes has a twelve month low of $27.00 and a twelve month high of $55.67.

Insider Activity

In other Alkermes news, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total value of $437,220.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 69,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,370,917.62. This trade represents a 11.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Nancy Lynn Md Snyderman sold 44,472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.35, for a total transaction of $2,239,165.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 15,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $775,138.25. This represents a 74.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 85,150 shares of company stock valued at $4,242,213 in the last 90 days. 4.59% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alkermes

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Baker BROS. Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP now owns 10,012,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,143,000 after purchasing an additional 1,920,916 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Alkermes by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,522,378 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,850,000 after acquiring an additional 109,595 shares during the last quarter. Commodore Capital LP grew its holdings in Alkermes by 18.3% during the 1st quarter. Commodore Capital LP now owns 4,200,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,512,000 after acquiring an additional 650,000 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Alkermes by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,080,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,198,000 after acquiring an additional 19,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in Alkermes by 104.2% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,968,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,976,000 after acquiring an additional 1,514,783 shares during the last quarter. 95.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Alkermes

Alkermes plc (NASDAQ: ALKS) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for central nervous system diseases. Its research and development activities include treatments for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, addiction and other serious neurological or psychiatric conditions, with an emphasis on long-acting injectable and extended-release formulations.

The company’s marketed products include VIVITROL, an extended-release injectable form of naltrexone used to treat alcohol dependence and prevent relapse to opioid dependence after detoxification; ARISTADA, an extended-release injectable formulation of aripiprazole lauroxil for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults; and LYBALVI, an oral combination of olanzapine and samidorphan approved for schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder in adults.

Founded in Ireland in 1987, Alkermes has developed drug-delivery technologies intended to help extend dosing intervals and support medication adherence.