Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS)

Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) saw unusually large options trading on Friday. Investors bought 3,253 put options on the company. This is an increase of 332% compared to the average volume of 753 put options.

Alkermes Stock Performance

ALKS stock opened at $41.22 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 108.48 and a beta of 0.32. Alkermes has a one year low of $27.00 and a one year high of $55.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 2.30. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alkermes news, EVP David Gaffin sold 2,034 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.03, for a total transaction of $83,455.02. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 221,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,083,549.64. The trade was a 0.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.35, for a total value of $2,239,165.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 15,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $775,138.25. The trade was a 74.28% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 76,150 shares of company stock valued at $3,752,181 in the last 90 days. 4.59% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alkermes

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Alkermes during the second quarter worth approximately $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Alkermes by 33.9% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Alkermes in the 2nd quarter worth $82,000. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. purchased a new stake in Alkermes in the 2nd quarter worth $104,000. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Alkermes in the 2nd quarter worth $113,000. 95.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALKS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Monday, September 21st. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alkermes in a report on Monday, September 21st. Mizuho raised Alkermes to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Alkermes from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 price objective on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.47.

About Alkermes

Alkermes plc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for central nervous system diseases. The company’s portfolio addresses conditions including addiction, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), with an emphasis on long-acting injectable, extended-release and other drug-delivery technologies.

Its marketed products include Vivitrol, an extended-release injectable formulation of naltrexone used to treat alcohol dependence and prevent opioid dependence relapse; Aristada, a long-acting injectable formulation of aripiprazole lauroxil for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults; Lybalvi, an oral combination of olanzapine and samidorphan for schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder; and Exservan, an oral film formulation of riluzole for ALS.

Founded in 1987, Alkermes is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, with operations and corporate offices in the United States, including Waltham, Massachusetts.