Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Exelixis, Inc. $EXEL

Key Points

• Crossmark Global Holdings boosted its stake in Exelixis by 231.3%, acquiring 55,348 shares to hold 79,277 shares worth $3.274 million at the end of the quarter.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently — Director Bob Oliver sold 30,250 shares and EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 67,814 shares, with insiders offloading 362,849 shares totaling about $15.9 million in the last three months.
• Wall Street is mixed: Exelixis has a consensus rating of Hold with an average price target of $46.94, after reporting an EPS beat ($0.94 vs. $0.74) while trading around $41.54 and carrying a market cap of about $10.79 billion.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL - Free Report) by 231.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 79,277 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 55,348 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Exelixis were worth $3,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Exelixis by 95.1% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 599 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Exelixis during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Luminist Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Exelixis by 2,740.0% during the second quarter. Luminist Capital LLC now owns 710 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 685 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the third quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exelixis in the second quarter worth about $60,000. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Exelixis news, Director Bob Oliver sold 30,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.81, for a total value of $1,325,252.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 21,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at $925,267.20. This represents a 58.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 67,814 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 381,908 shares in the company, valued at $16,620,636.16. The trade was a 15.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 362,849 shares of company stock worth $15,917,463. 2.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on EXEL. Bank of America cut shares of Exelixis from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Zacks Research cut shares of Exelixis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Exelixis from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Exelixis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Exelixis from $46.00 to $43.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Exelixis presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.94.

Exelixis Stock Performance

NASDAQ EXEL opened at $41.54 on Friday. Exelixis, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.38 and a 52-week high of $49.62. The company has a fifty day moving average of $43.57 and a 200-day moving average of $41.57. The company has a market capitalization of $10.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.41.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The biotechnology company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.20. Exelixis had a return on equity of 36.29% and a net margin of 33.73%.The business had revenue of $598.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $609.17 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.55 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Exelixis, Inc. will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exelixis 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.

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