AQR Capital Management LLC Decreases Position in Alkermes plc $ALKS

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Alkermes plc by 34.4%, selling 279,276 shares and now holding 532,265 shares valued at approximately $17.58 million.
• Analysts have shown optimism for Alkermes, with several upgrades leading to a consensus target price increase to $42.00, while the company's recent quarterly earnings exceeded expectations with an EPS of $0.52.
• The stock has experienced a 2.1% decline recently, with a current market value of $4.60 billion and trading between a twelve-month low of $25.17 and a high of $36.45.

AQR Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS - Free Report) by 34.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 532,265 shares of the company's stock after selling 279,276 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.32% of Alkermes worth $17,575,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Alkermes by 23.4% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,460 shares of the company's stock valued at $577,000 after purchasing an additional 3,316 shares during the last quarter. MPM Bioimpact LLC bought a new stake in Alkermes during the first quarter valued at about $11,148,000. Baker BROS. Advisors LP raised its holdings in Alkermes by 7.2% during the first quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP now owns 4,483,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $148,038,000 after acquiring an additional 301,534 shares during the period. PDT Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 26.4% in the first quarter. PDT Partners LLC now owns 131,383 shares of the company's stock worth $4,338,000 after purchasing an additional 27,436 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 117.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 275,526 shares of the company's stock worth $9,098,000 after purchasing an additional 148,696 shares during the last quarter. 95.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alkermes Trading Down 2.7%

ALKS traded down $0.74 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $26.97. 2,480,906 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,863,509. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $28.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.53. Alkermes plc has a 1-year low of $25.17 and a 1-year high of $36.45.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. Alkermes has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.030-1.210 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Alkermes plc will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ALKS shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised Alkermes to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. UBS Group upgraded Alkermes from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $33.00 to $42.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Alkermes in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Alkermes from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC set a $43.00 target price on Alkermes in a report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alkermes presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $41.85.

Alkermes 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.