Abacus FCF Advisors LLC Invests $7.29 Million in Exelixis, Inc. $EXEL

Key Points

• Abacus FCF Advisors LLC acquired a new $7.29 million stake in Exelixis, purchasing 133,936 shares during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 85.27% of the company.
• Exelixis reported quarterly EPS of $0.91, beating estimates by $0.06, while revenue rose 10.6% year over year to $628.69 million, slightly below expectations.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $50.07 price target, below the stock’s reported opening price of $54.39; insiders sold approximately $3.4 million of shares over the past 90 days.

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 133,936 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $7,287,000. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC owned 0.05% of Exelixis as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Exelixis during the second quarter valued at $1,581,991,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Exelixis by 48.8% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,658,388 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $598,647,000 after purchasing an additional 4,477,029 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Exelixis in the 4th quarter worth about $106,460,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Exelixis during the 2nd quarter worth about $107,803,000. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Exelixis by 100.1% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,655,069 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $109,654,000 after purchasing an additional 1,328,087 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.27% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Exelixis

In related news, Director Sue Gail Eckhardt sold 9,812 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.14, for a total value of $491,973.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 16,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $806,201.06. This trade represents a 37.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Mary C. Beckerle sold 9,812 shares of Exelixis stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.66, for a total value of $526,511.92. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $862,799.14. This trade represents a 37.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 67,000 shares of company stock worth $3,404,652 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EXEL has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Exelixis from $40.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 price objective on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Exelixis from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Exelixis from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Tuesday. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $50.07.

Exelixis Price Performance

Shares of EXEL opened at $54.39 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.48 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.44. Exelixis, Inc. has a one year low of $33.76 and a one year high of $57.57. The company's fifty day moving average price is $54.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.44.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $628.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $636.40 million. Exelixis had a return on equity of 42.17% and a net margin of 35.33%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Exelixis, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Exelixis Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EXEL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source