Xenon Pharmaceuticals Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:XENE)

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors acquired 4,063 put options on the company. This is an increase of 2,362% compared to the typical daily volume of 165 put options.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of XENE opened at $37.28 on Friday. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $33.27 and a 12-month high of $46.87. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $39.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.85 billion, a PE ratio of -13.22 and a beta of 1.26.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Xenon Pharmaceuticals

In other Xenon Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Sherry Aulin sold 18,709 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.21, for a total value of $770,997.89. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 22,468 shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.20, for a total transaction of $903,213.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 31,302 shares in the company, valued at $1,258,340.40. This represents a 41.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 57,492 shares of company stock valued at $2,334,969 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.52% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,740 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 487 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 3.8% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,592 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $535,000 after buying an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP boosted its holdings in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP now owns 11,441 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $448,000 after acquiring an additional 630 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 69,529 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,726,000 after acquiring an additional 720 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 39.8% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,742 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. 95.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

XENE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $53.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 28th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $57.38.

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.