Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE)

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 4,063 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 2,362% compared to the average volume of 165 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XENE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Chardan Capital raised Xenon Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Xenon Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.43, for a total value of $1,777,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $266,580. The trade was a 86.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 65,302 shares of company stock worth $2,924,128. Company insiders own 4.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 2,560.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 745 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.45% of the company’s stock.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of XENE opened at $41.00 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.54 and a beta of 0.97. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $26.74 and a 52 week high of $46.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $42.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.13.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.15) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.16) by $0.01. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.81) EPS. Xenon Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Xenon Pharmaceuticals will post -3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

About Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel, small‐molecule drugs targeting ion channels in the central and peripheral nervous system. The company’s research focus centers on neurological and pain disorders—including epilepsy, migraine, and neuropathic pain—by modulating key ion‐channel proteins to restore normal neuronal function. Xenon’s scientific platform draws upon advances in ion‐channel biology and structure‐based drug design to identify and optimize therapeutic candidates with the potential for improved safety and efficacy profiles compared with existing treatments.

The company’s pipeline comprises multiple preclinical and clinical programs.