Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) Upgraded by UBS Group to "Buy" Rating

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at UBS Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $42.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $33.00. UBS Group's target price indicates a potential upside of 44.38% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on ALKS. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Alkermes from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Alkermes from $40.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on Alkermes in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Alkermes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alkermes presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $40.00.

Alkermes Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ALKS traded down $0.24 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $29.09. 3,628,858 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,746,730. The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.77 and a 200 day moving average of $31.02. Alkermes has a twelve month low of $22.90 and a twelve month high of $36.45. The company has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.47.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $306.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $307.53 million. Alkermes had a net margin of 23.30% and a return on equity of 27.52%. The business's revenue was down 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Alkermes will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 3,334 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.09, for a total transaction of $103,654.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 86,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,680,206.72. The trade was a 3.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Alkermes

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALKS. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alkermes by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 477,183 shares of the company's stock worth $15,757,000 after acquiring an additional 27,136 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Alkermes in the 1st quarter worth about $1,403,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Alkermes by 2,422.0% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 881,827 shares of the company's stock worth $29,100,000 after purchasing an additional 846,861 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Alkermes by 25.6% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 85,564 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,825,000 after purchasing an additional 17,413 shares during the period. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its holdings in Alkermes by 105.2% in the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 9,270 shares of the company's stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 4,752 shares during the period. 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.