Vise Technologies Inc. Acquires Shares of 15,708 Exelixis, Inc. $EXEL

Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new position in Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 15,708 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $855,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Exelixis during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,581,991,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Exelixis by 48.8% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,658,388 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $598,647,000 after purchasing an additional 4,477,029 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Exelixis by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,054,743 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $265,379,000 after purchasing an additional 94,218 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Exelixis by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,299,597 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $184,391,000 after buying an additional 39,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in Exelixis by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,206,656 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $184,378,000 after buying an additional 995,949 shares in the last quarter. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sue Gail Eckhardt sold 9,812 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.14, for a total value of $491,973.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 16,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $806,201.06. This represents a 37.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Dana Aftab sold 43,451 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.35, for a total value of $2,187,757.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 594,741 shares in the company, valued at $29,945,209.35. The trade was a 6.81% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 67,000 shares of company stock valued at $3,404,652 in the last three months. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citizens Jmp upped their price target on Exelixis from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Exelixis from $40.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. UBS Group set a $55.00 price objective on Exelixis in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Exelixis from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.07.

Exelixis Stock Performance

EXEL opened at $54.08 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $54.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.60. Exelixis, Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.76 and a 52 week high of $57.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.40 billion, a PE ratio of 17.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.44.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $628.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $636.40 million. Exelixis had a return on equity of 42.17% and a net margin of 35.33%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Exelixis, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Exelixis Profile

Exelixis, Inc is a biotechnology company specializing in the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule therapies primarily for the treatment of cancer. Building on a platform that leverages model organism genetics and high-throughput screening, the company focuses its research on kinase inhibitors that modulate critical signaling pathways involved in tumor growth and metastasis. Exelixis’s translational research approach aims to advance novel compounds from early-stage discovery through clinical development and regulatory approval.

The company’s most recognized products include CABOMETYX® (cabozantinib), approved for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma and hepatocellular carcinoma, and COMETRIQ® (cabozantinib) for metastatic medullary thyroid cancer.