Traders Purchase High Volume of Exelixis Put Options (NASDAQ:EXEL)

Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) was the target of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 10,010 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 826% compared to the typical volume of 1,081 put options.

Exelixis Trading Down 1.8%

Exelixis stock traded down $1.00 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $55.10. 519,060 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,672,124. Exelixis has a 1-year low of $33.76 and a 1-year high of $57.57. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $54.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.88. The stock has a market cap of $13.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.44.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Exelixis news, Director Jack L. Wyszomierski sold 3,925 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.55, for a total value of $198,408.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 284,384 shares in the company, valued at $14,375,611.20. This trade represents a 1.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sue Gail Eckhardt sold 9,812 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.14, for a total transaction of $491,973.68. Following the sale, the director owned 16,079 shares in the company, valued at $806,201.06. This represents a 37.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 23,549 shares of company stock worth $1,216,894 in the last three months. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Exelixis during the second quarter worth $1,581,991,000. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Exelixis by 4,875.6% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 14,785,373 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $804,472,000 after purchasing an additional 14,488,217 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Exelixis by 48.8% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,658,388 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $598,647,000 after buying an additional 4,477,029 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the fourth quarter valued at about $106,460,000. Finally, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new stake in Exelixis during the second quarter worth about $113,951,000. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on EXEL shares. Leerink Partners lowered Exelixis from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $52.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. UBS Group set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Exelixis from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Exelixis from $40.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Exelixis from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.07.

About Exelixis

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.