Analysts Set Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) PT at $40.00

Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $40.00.

ALKS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Alkermes from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $45.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Alkermes from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Alkermes from $40.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Alkermes to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 3,334 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.09, for a total transaction of $103,654.06. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 86,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,680,206.72. This represents a 3.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alkermes

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in Alkermes by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 142,480 shares of the company's stock worth $4,098,000 after acquiring an additional 4,799 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Alkermes during the fourth quarter worth about $413,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alkermes during the fourth quarter worth about $940,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Alkermes by 27.1% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 331,359 shares of the company's stock worth $9,530,000 after purchasing an additional 70,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Alkermes by 558.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,950 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 2,502 shares during the period. 95.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alkermes Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of ALKS stock traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $28.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,935,235 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,726,724. The company has a market capitalization of $4.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.78, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.47. Alkermes has a 12-month low of $22.90 and a 12-month high of $36.45. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $29.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.95.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $306.51 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. Research analysts expect that Alkermes will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

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.