UBS Group AG Cuts Stock Holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. $XENE

Key Points

• UBS Group AG cut its Xenon Pharmaceuticals stake by 50.8% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 52,539 shares valued at about $2.36 million.
• Several analysts remain bullish on XENE: the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” with an average price target of $77.20, while individual targets range as high as $97.
• Insider selling has also been notable, with company insiders selling 296,707 shares worth about $17.8 million over the last 90 days.

UBS Group AG reduced its position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE - Free Report) by 50.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,539 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 54,205 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned approximately 0.07% of Xenon Pharmaceuticals worth $2,355,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 2,560.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 745 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. State of Wyoming increased its holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 112.8% in the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,151 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 610 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 541.4% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,225 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,034 shares in the last quarter. 95.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on XENE. Stifel Nicolaus set a $66.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $97.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, March 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $56.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xenon Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Andrea Difabio sold 1,342 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.23, for a total value of $74,118.66. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,301 shares in the company, valued at $403,234.23. This represents a 15.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Christopher John Kenney sold 1,410 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.23, for a total transaction of $77,874.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,069 shares in the company, valued at $390,420.87. This represents a 16.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 296,707 shares of company stock worth $17,845,365 over the last ninety days. 4.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $53.90 on Thursday. Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.19 and a 12-month high of $63.95. The stock has a market cap of $5.21 billion, a PE ratio of -11.47 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a 50-day moving average of $56.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.93.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.17) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($1.17). During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.83) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. will post -4.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel, small‐molecule drugs targeting ion channels in the central and peripheral nervous system. The company's research focus centers on neurological and pain disorders—including epilepsy, migraine, and neuropathic pain—by modulating key ion‐channel proteins to restore normal neuronal function. Xenon's scientific platform draws upon advances in ion‐channel biology and structure‐based drug design to identify and optimize therapeutic candidates with the potential for improved safety and efficacy profiles compared with existing treatments.

The company's pipeline comprises multiple preclinical and clinical programs.

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