Atika Capital Management LLC Sells 53,400 Shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE)

Atika Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE - Free Report) by 42.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 72,600 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 53,400 shares during the quarter. Atika Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Xenon Pharmaceuticals worth $2,846,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 140.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,422 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 1,414 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $101,000. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 39.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,742 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $210,000. Finally, HighMark Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 22.0% during the fourth quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,100 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.45% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 22,468 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.20, for a total value of $903,213.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 31,302 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,258,340.40. The trade was a 41.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.52% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on XENE shares. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, February 24th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Xenon Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xenon Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $57.38.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.1 %

XENE stock traded down $0.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $30.40. The stock had a trading volume of 238,309 shares, compared to its average volume of 428,306. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.84 and a beta of 1.21. Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.74 and a 52 week high of $46.00.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.84) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.89) by $0.05. As a group, equities analysts expect that Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. will post -3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Profile

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc, a neuroscience-focused biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of therapeutics to treat patients with neurological disorders in Canada. Its clinical development pipeline includes XEN1101, a novel and potent Kv7 potassium channel opener, which is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of epilepsy and other neurological disorders.