Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Rating Lowered to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on EXEL. TD Cowen upped their target price on Exelixis from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Exelixis from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings cut Exelixis from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Exelixis from $56.00 to $52.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Exelixis from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.79.

Exelixis Price Performance

Shares of EXEL opened at $54.07 on Friday. Exelixis has a 1-year low of $33.76 and a 1-year high of $57.57. The stock has a market cap of $13.59 billion, a PE ratio of 17.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $54.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.97.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.06. Exelixis had a return on equity of 42.17% and a net margin of 35.33%.The company had revenue of $628.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.75 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Exelixis will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Exelixis

In other Exelixis news, Director Sue Gail Eckhardt sold 9,812 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.14, for a total transaction of $491,973.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,201.06. This represents a 37.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Dana Aftab sold 43,451 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.35, for a total value of $2,187,757.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 594,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,945,209.35. The trade was a 6.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 130,824 shares of company stock worth $6,555,231 over the last three months. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exelixis

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Exelixis by 81.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 43,181 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,592,000 after buying an additional 19,407 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Exelixis by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,466,779 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,153,000 after buying an additional 68,133 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in shares of Exelixis by 83.4% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 38,458 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,420,000 after acquiring an additional 17,483 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Exelixis by 134.3% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,647 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 944 shares during the period. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Exelixis by 23.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 14,362 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $633,000 after acquiring an additional 2,764 shares during the period. 85.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Exelixis

Here are the key news stories impacting Exelixis this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Exelixis reported second-quarter EPS of $0.91, ahead of the $0.85-$0.86 analyst consensus and up from $0.75 a year earlier. Revenue rose 10.6% year over year to approximately $628.7 million, while the company continues to benefit from its established cabozantinib business. Exelixis Q2 earnings
• Positive Sentiment: The company launched a new Phase 3 trial testing zanzalintinib in residual colorectal cancer, expanding the potential market for its pipeline and providing another long-term growth catalyst. Exelixis colorectal cancer trial
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen reaffirmed a Buy rating and a $55 price target, citing resilience in cabozantinib, cost discipline and upside from zanzalintinib despite near-term guidance pressure.
• Neutral Sentiment: Stifel raised its price target from $47 to $51 but retained a Hold rating. Its target remains below the recent trading level, suggesting limited near-term upside in the analyst’s view.
• Negative Sentiment: Exelixis lowered the midpoint of its 2026 revenue outlook by $50 million, primarily because the NET launch has been slower than expected. Although the EPS beat was encouraging, the revenue miss and reduced outlook are weighing on growth expectations. Exelixis 2026 guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Leerink Partners downgraded EXEL from Outperform to Market Perform and set a $52 price target, below the recent share price. Leerink Partners downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research maintains a Strong Sell rating and made small reductions to its FY2026-FY2028 EPS forecasts, including a FY2026 estimate of $3.12 versus the broader consensus of $3.15.

Exelixis Company Profile

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.