Traders Buy High Volume of Xenon Pharmaceuticals Put Options (NASDAQ:XENE)

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 4,063 put options on the company. This is an increase of 2,362% compared to the typical volume of 165 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Xenon Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $47.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $54.82.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.3%

NASDAQ XENE traded down $0.71 on Friday, reaching $30.30. The company had a trading volume of 969,939 shares, compared to its average volume of 873,417. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $26.74 and a 52-week high of $46.00. The company's fifty day moving average is $31.50 and its 200 day moving average is $34.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.38 and a beta of 1.10.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.83) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.62) earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Xenon Pharmaceuticals will post -3.1 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,525,290 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $294,991,000 after purchasing an additional 607,606 shares in the last quarter. Boxer Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $23,520,000. Vestal Point Capital LP increased its holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 60.5% in the 1st quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP now owns 1,300,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $43,615,000 after acquiring an additional 490,000 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 38.9% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,356,895 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $53,190,000 after buying an additional 380,112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stempoint Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $14,733,000. Institutional investors own 95.45% of the company's stock.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc, a neuroscience-focused biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of therapeutics to treat patients with neurological disorders in Canada. Its clinical development pipeline includes XEN1101, a novel and potent Kv7 potassium channel opener, which is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of epilepsy and other neurological disorders.