12,417 Shares in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) Purchased by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. invested approximately $410,000 in Alkermes plc, acquiring 12,417 shares during the first quarter as disclosed in a recent SEC filing.
• Institutional investors now hold 95.21% of Alkermes' stock, with notable increases in holdings from firms like RTW Investments and Nuveen Asset Management during the fourth quarter.
• Alkermes last reported earnings with $0.52 per share, exceeding analyst expectations, while the company's revenue fell 2.1% year-over-year to $390.66 million.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 12,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $410,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ALKS. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 14.3% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 57,067 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,884,000 after buying an additional 7,145 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Alkermes by 105.2% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 9,270 shares of the company's stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 4,752 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc grew its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 99.2% during the 1st quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 26,645 shares of the company's stock valued at $880,000 after acquiring an additional 13,268 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in shares of Alkermes by 245.2% in the first quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 54,347 shares of the company's stock worth $1,795,000 after acquiring an additional 38,602 shares during the last quarter. Finally, S&CO Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 3.5% during the first quarter. S&CO Inc. now owns 221,960 shares of the company's stock worth $7,329,000 after acquiring an additional 7,495 shares in the last quarter. 95.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alkermes Trading Up 0.5%

NASDAQ:ALKS traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $26.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,371,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,159,947. The company has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.47. Alkermes plc has a fifty-two week low of $25.56 and a fifty-two week high of $36.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $28.87 and a 200-day moving average of $30.67.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $390.66 million during 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 revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.16 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Alkermes plc will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on ALKS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Alkermes in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Alkermes from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Alkermes from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group upgraded shares of Alkermes from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $42.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Alkermes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $41.08.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 3,334 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.09, for a total value of $103,654.06. Following the sale, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

About Alkermes

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.