XTX Topco Ltd Buys 38,602 Shares of Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS)

Key Points

• XTX Topco Ltd significantly increased its stake in Alkermes plc by 245.2%, owning 54,347 shares valued at approximately $1.8 million as of the recent SEC filing.
• Alkermes reported earnings of $0.52 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations by $0.10 and experiencing a 2.1% decline in revenue year-over-year.
• Several analysts have updated their ratings on Alkermes, with Royal Bank of Canada increasing its price target to $42.00, while UBS upgraded the stock from "neutral" to "buy".

XTX Topco Ltd grew its stake in shares of Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS - Free Report) by 245.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 54,347 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 38,602 shares during the quarter. XTX Topco Ltd's holdings in Alkermes were worth $1,795,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Alkermes by 147.4% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 889,472 shares of the company's stock worth $25,581,000 after acquiring an additional 529,962 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management bought a new position in Alkermes in the first quarter worth $348,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Alkermes by 30.9% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 120,997 shares of the company's stock worth $3,995,000 after purchasing an additional 28,596 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Alkermes by 31.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,396 shares of the company's stock worth $178,000 after purchasing an additional 1,305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in Alkermes by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 18,362 shares of the company's stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.21% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alkermes

In other news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 3,334 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 86,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,680,206.72. This represents a 3.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Alkermes Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ ALKS traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $26.55. 1,587,001 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,172,861. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.44. The company's 50 day moving average price is $29.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.77. Alkermes plc has a 12 month low of $25.56 and a 12 month high of $36.45.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $390.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $343.20 million. Alkermes had a return on equity of 24.86% and a net margin of 23.15%. Alkermes's quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.16 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Alkermes plc will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Alkermes from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Alkermes from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Alkermes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Alkermes to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Alkermes in a report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $41.08.

Alkermes Company Profile

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.