Norges Bank Acquires New Holdings in Alkermes plc $ALKS

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,945,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $54,442,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in Alkermes by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 12,141 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Alkermes by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in Alkermes by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 8,762 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in Alkermes by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 43,002 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,290,000 after buying an additional 387 shares during the period. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank increased its stake in Alkermes by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 60,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.21% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Alkermes

In other news, EVP David Joseph Gaffin sold 2,034 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.05, for a total value of $87,563.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 229,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,881,008.20. The trade was a 0.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 9,000 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.40, for a total transaction of $300,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 81,389 shares in the company, valued at $2,718,392.60. This represents a 9.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 33,102 shares of company stock worth $1,220,628 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 4.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Alkermes from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $43.00 target price on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of Alkermes from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Alkermes from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alkermes has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.40.

Alkermes Stock Performance

Shares of ALKS opened at $42.80 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $35.90 and its 200-day moving average is $32.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.56 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 2.27 and a quick ratio of 1.70. Alkermes plc has a 12-month low of $25.17 and a 12-month high of $44.57.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, February 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $384.55 million for the quarter. Alkermes had a net margin of 9.78% and a return on equity of 9.26%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Alkermes plc will post -0.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alkermes Profile

Alkermes plc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative medicines to address unmet needs in the central nervous system (CNS). The company applies its proprietary drug delivery technologies and therapeutic expertise to advance treatments for addiction, schizophrenia, bipolar I disorder and depression. Alkermes’ portfolio includes both commercial products and a pipeline of investigational therapies designed to improve patient outcomes and support long-term disease management.

Alkermes’ commercial franchise features several approved products.