Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Upgraded at Truist Financial

Key Points

• Truist Financial upgraded Exelixis to a "strong-buy", but analyst views are mixed overall — the consensus rating is "Hold" with a $47 average price target after multiple downgrades and target adjustments from other firms.
• Exelixis beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.94 vs. $0.74 expected), though revenue of $598.66M slightly missed consensus; the company reported strong profitability (ROE 36.29%, net margin 33.73%).
• Insiders sold 362,849 shares (~$15.9M) in the past three months, including large sales by two executive VPs, while institutional investors hold about 85.27% of the stock.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Truist Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on EXEL. Citigroup lowered Exelixis from a "market outperform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Exelixis from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Bank of America downgraded shares of Exelixis from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Exelixis from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Exelixis from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $47.00.

Exelixis Trading Down 0.6%

Exelixis stock opened at $44.65 on Monday. Exelixis has a 12 month low of $33.76 and a 12 month high of $49.62. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $43.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.70. The company has a market cap of $11.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.12, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.42.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The biotechnology company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $598.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $609.17 million. Exelixis had a return on equity of 36.29% and a net margin of 33.73%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Exelixis will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 67,814 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.52, for a total transaction of $2,951,265.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 381,908 shares in the company, valued at $16,620,636.16. The trade was a 15.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Dana Aftab sold 47,918 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.50, for a total transaction of $2,132,351.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 616,106 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,416,717. The trade was a 7.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 362,849 shares of company stock valued at $15,917,463 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.85% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelixis

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the 1st quarter valued at about $707,000. Strs Ohio increased its position in shares of Exelixis by 712.8% in the first quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 51,303 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,200,000 after purchasing an additional 44,991 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Exelixis by 198.5% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,331 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,550 shares during the last quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Exelixis in the first quarter valued at approximately $729,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Exelixis by 11.2% during the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 66,244 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,841,000 after purchasing an additional 6,661 shares during the last quarter. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Exelixis

Exelixis, Inc is a biotechnology company specializing in the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule therapies primarily for the treatment of cancer. Building on a platform that leverages model organism genetics and high-throughput screening, the company focuses its research on kinase inhibitors that modulate critical signaling pathways involved in tumor growth and metastasis. Exelixis's translational research approach aims to advance novel compounds from early-stage discovery through clinical development and regulatory approval.

The company's most recognized products include CABOMETYX® (cabozantinib), approved for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma and hepatocellular carcinoma, and COMETRIQ® (cabozantinib) for metastatic medullary thyroid cancer.

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