Swiss National Bank Sells 6,100 Shares of Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS)

Swiss National Bank trimmed its position in shares of Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 307,700 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,100 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.19% of Alkermes worth $8,849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Alkermes during the third quarter worth approximately $367,000. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in Alkermes by 190.3% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 36,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,021,000 after purchasing an additional 23,921 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Alkermes by 254.5% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 32,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $944,000 after purchasing an additional 23,541 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Alkermes by 74.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 149,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,184,000 after buying an additional 63,939 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Alkermes by 108.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 423,931 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,867,000 after buying an additional 220,893 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.21% of the company’s stock.

Alkermes Stock Up 2.0 %

ALKS opened at $34.60 on Friday. Alkermes plc has a 52 week low of $22.90 and a 52 week high of $36.45. The stock has a market cap of $5.63 billion, a PE ratio of 15.94, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.62. The business has a 50 day moving average of $32.97 and a 200-day moving average of $30.04.

Alkermes (NASDAQ:ALKS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.11. Alkermes had a return on equity of 30.80% and a net margin of 23.57%. Equities analysts anticipate that Alkermes plc will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ALKS shares. UBS Group upgraded Alkermes from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $21.00 to $38.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Alkermes in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Alkermes from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Alkermes from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Alkermes in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. Four 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 MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.46.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 100,918 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.05, for a total value of $3,234,421.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,419,494.50. This trade represents a 69.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 4.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.