Wesbanco Bank Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Exelixis, Inc. $EXEL

Key Points

• Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its Exelixis stake by 96.3% in the fourth quarter, buying 27,000 additional shares and bringing its total to 55,034 shares valued at about $2.41 million.
• Exelixis reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.87 and revenue of $610.8 million, both slightly ahead of analyst expectations and up 10% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but generally constructive: several firms raised price targets, and the stock currently carries an average “Hold” rating with a consensus target price of $47.83.

Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL - Free Report) by 96.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,034 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 27,000 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc.'s holdings in Exelixis were worth $2,412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EXEL. Farallon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Exelixis by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 19,501,500 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $805,412,000 after buying an additional 3,466,000 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in Exelixis by 1,230.8% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,195,971 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $131,994,000 after buying an additional 2,955,813 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Exelixis by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,181,359 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $379,190,000 after buying an additional 1,575,280 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its holdings in Exelixis by 153.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 2,462,948 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $101,720,000 after buying an additional 1,490,520 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its holdings in Exelixis by 100.1% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,655,069 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $109,654,000 after buying an additional 1,328,087 shares during the period. 85.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exelixis

In other news, CFO Christopher J. Senner sold 34,278 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.00, for a total transaction of $1,473,954.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,042,579 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,830,897. The trade was a 3.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jack L. Wyszomierski sold 99,574 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.01, for a total value of $4,382,251.74. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 279,942 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,320,247.42. This represents a 26.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 451,195 shares of company stock valued at $19,982,874. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on EXEL. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Exelixis from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Exelixis from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Exelixis from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Exelixis from $46.00 to $43.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Exelixis in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Exelixis presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $47.83.

Exelixis Price Performance

NASDAQ EXEL opened at $48.16 on Friday. Exelixis, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.76 and a 1-year high of $49.62. The company has a market cap of $12.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $43.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.97.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.12. Exelixis had a return on equity of 39.89% and a net margin of 35.08%.The business had revenue of $610.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $607.51 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.55 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Exelixis, Inc. will post 3.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

More Exelixis News

Here are the key news stories impacting Exelixis this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Exelixis reported solid Q1 results, with revenue of $610.8 million and earnings per share of $0.87, both ahead of expectations. The company also completed its prior buyback authorization and launched a new $750 million share repurchase program, which can support the stock by reducing share count. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive, with HC Wainwright raising its price target to $56 and Morgan Stanley lifting its target to $50, signaling improved confidence in Exelixis’ outlook. Article Title Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company also announced upcoming investor conference appearances in May, which may help keep investor attention on its pipeline and strategy. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several directors disclosed stock sales on May 7, including George Poste, Maria C. Freire, and Mary C. Beckerle. Insider selling can create some near-term caution, but the transactions were disclosed and do not by themselves indicate a change in the business outlook. Article Title Article Title Article Title

About Exelixis

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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