Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.38.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 7.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:XENE opened at $28.23 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.16 billion, a PE ratio of -10.01 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.19. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $27.56 and a 12-month high of $46.00.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.84) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.89) by $0.05. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Xenon Pharmaceuticals will post -3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 22,468 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.20, for a total transaction of $903,213.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 31,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,258,340.40. This trade represents a 41.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.52% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 607,606 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,843,447 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $151,317,000 after purchasing an additional 15,226 shares during the period. Braidwell LP boosted its stake in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 2,913,964 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $114,227,000 after purchasing an additional 206,709 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,866,755 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $112,425,000 after purchasing an additional 314,363 shares during the period. Finally, Polar Capital Holdings Plc raised its stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 2,697,657 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $105,748,000 after buying an additional 253,012 shares in the last quarter. 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.