Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) Stock Price Up 2.9%

Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS)’s stock price was up 2.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $24.57 and last traded at $24.46. Approximately 974,501 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 49% from the average daily volume of 1,896,073 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.77.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ALKS shares. TheStreet upgraded Alkermes from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Bank of America raised their price target on Alkermes from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. HC Wainwright restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Friday. UBS Group downgraded Alkermes from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $25.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $39.00 price target on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Monday, April 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.38.

Alkermes Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.43, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.50.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.29). The business had revenue of $377.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $362.78 million. Alkermes had a net margin of 21.39% and a return on equity of 16.10%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.02) earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Alkermes plc will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Alkermes announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 15th that permits the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 10,417 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total transaction of $292,717.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 65,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,852,099.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alkermes

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC raised its holdings in Alkermes by 28.5% in the 1st quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 9,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 2,148 shares in the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Alkermes in the 1st quarter valued at $297,000. Guidance Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Alkermes in the 1st quarter valued at $428,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Alkermes by 525.5% in the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 146,381 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,963,000 after purchasing an additional 122,980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Alkermes by 36.7% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 733 shares during the last quarter. 95.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alkermes Company Profile

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.