Xencor, Inc. (NASDAQ:XNCR) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Sell-Side Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts rate Xencor “Moderate Buy”: Of 11 analysts, six recommend buying, one strongly recommends buying, three rate it hold, and one recommends selling. Their average 12-month price target is $42.22.
• Quarterly results beat expectations: Xencor reported EPS of $0.50 versus the $0.33-per-share loss analysts expected, while revenue of $116.52 million topped the $63 million consensus and rose 453.3% year over year.
• A director significantly reduced his stake: Richard Ranieri sold 81,252 shares for about $3.19 million, cutting his position by 81.44%.

Shares of Xencor, Inc. (NASDAQ:XNCR - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eleven ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $42.22.

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Xencor from $30.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Xencor from $14.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on Xencor from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Bank of America raised their price objective on Xencor from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Xencor in a report on Thursday, November 5th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company.

Xencor Stock Performance

XNCR stock traded down $1.04 on Friday, hitting $37.09. 958,135 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,821,041. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $27.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.10. Xencor has a 12-month low of $10.38 and a 12-month high of $40.60. The stock has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -23.33 and a beta of 0.78.

Xencor (NASDAQ:XNCR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.33) by $0.83. The business had revenue of $116.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.00 million. Xencor had a negative return on equity of 21.28% and a negative net margin of 58.79%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 453.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.08) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Xencor will post -2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Richard Ranieri sold 81,252 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.25, for a total value of $3,189,141.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $726,674.50. This represents a 81.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 5.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Xencor

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in XNCR. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Xencor during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Xencor during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Xencor by 18.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,791 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of Xencor during the 2nd quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Xencor during the 3rd quarter valued at about $95,000.

About Xencor

Xencor, Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that discovers and develops engineered antibody therapeutics for cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company's XmAb technology platform modifies antibody structures to create treatments with properties such as enhanced immune-cell activity or the ability to bind to more than one target. Xencor advances its own drug candidates and works with other biopharmaceutical companies through research collaborations and licensing agreements. Its development programs include antibody-based approaches designed to engage immune cells or block disease-related targets.

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