Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 13,710,000 shares, a decrease of 17.2% from the November 15th total of 16,560,000 shares. Currently, 8.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,730,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.9 days.

Insider Activity at Alkermes

In related news, Director Cato T. Laurencin sold 2,691 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.85, for a total transaction of $85,708.35. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 23,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $732,964.05. This trade represents a 10.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 10,471 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.53, for a total value of $309,208.63. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 99,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,930,498.14. This represents a 9.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 147,738 shares of company stock worth $4,572,904 over the last quarter. Insiders own 4.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Alkermes

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Alkermes by 31.8% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,640,642 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,939,000 after purchasing an additional 1,362,079 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 14.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,884,012 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,507,000 after purchasing an additional 371,039 shares during the last quarter. Armistice Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Alkermes by 301.5% in the second quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 2,699,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,050,000 after purchasing an additional 2,026,961 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 87.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,203,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025,905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its position in Alkermes by 365.5% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 1,882,936 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,704,000 after buying an additional 1,478,422 shares in the last quarter. 95.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alkermes Price Performance

NASDAQ:ALKS opened at $30.51 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $28.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.97. Alkermes has a 12 month low of $22.90 and a 12 month high of $32.88. The firm has a market cap of $4.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALKS has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Alkermes from $32.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Alkermes from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Alkermes from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Alkermes from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $25.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $37.00 price target on shares of Alkermes in a report on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.42.

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.