Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Alkermes from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating, with FY2027 earnings estimated at $1.57 EPS.
• The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $390.66 million.
• Insider activity included EVP Craig C. Hopkinson selling 9,000 shares of Alkermes, while several hedge funds increased their stakes in the company during the third quarter.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Alkermes' FY2027 earnings at $1.57 EPS.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Alkermes in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Needham & Company LLC set a $43.00 price objective on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Tuesday, September 9th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $45.00 target price (up from $38.00) on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Alkermes from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Alkermes in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $42.85.

Alkermes Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of ALKS opened at $30.04 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.13. The company has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 14.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.54. Alkermes has a 52-week low of $25.17 and a 52-week high of $36.45.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.10. Alkermes had a return on equity of 24.86% and a net margin of 23.15%.The company had revenue of $390.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $343.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.16 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Alkermes has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.030-1.210 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Alkermes will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alkermes

In related news, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.53, for a total transaction of $283,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 73,740 shares in the company, valued at $2,325,022.20. This represents a 10.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alkermes

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Alkermes by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,850 shares of the company's stock valued at $536,000 after purchasing an additional 2,017 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 8.4% during the third quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 80,400 shares of the company's stock worth $2,412,000 after purchasing an additional 6,200 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its position in Alkermes by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 134,387 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,032,000 after buying an additional 21,067 shares during the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. increased its stake in Alkermes by 109.8% in the 3rd quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 15,607 shares of the company's stock valued at $468,000 after buying an additional 8,169 shares during the period. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in Alkermes during the 3rd quarter worth $27,040,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.21% of the company's stock.

About Alkermes

Alkermes plc, a biopharmaceutical company, researches, develops, and commercializes pharmaceutical products to address unmet medical needs of patients in therapeutic areas in the United States, Ireland, and internationally. It has a portfolio of proprietary commercial products for the treatment of alcohol dependence, opioid dependence, schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder and a pipeline of clinical and preclinical product candidates in development for neurological disorders.

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