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

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 4,063 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 2,362% compared to the average volume of 165 put options.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:XENE opened at $35.14 on Friday. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $26.74 and a fifty-two week high of $46.00. The company has a fifty day moving average of $35.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of -12.46 and a beta of 1.21.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.84) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.89) by $0.05. Research analysts forecast that Xenon Pharmaceuticals will post -3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com cut Xenon Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.78.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 16,315 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.50, for a total transaction of $660,757.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 31,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,267,731. This represents a 34.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 5.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 1,263.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 976,783 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $38,456,000 after acquiring an additional 905,129 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,525,290 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $294,991,000 after purchasing an additional 607,606 shares in the last quarter. Boxer Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $23,520,000. Stempoint Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $14,733,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 12.3% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.