Franklin Resources Inc. Boosts Position in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) by 2.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 120,006 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,903 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Alkermes were worth $3,486,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alkermes during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,098,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Alkermes during the 3rd quarter valued at about $582,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alkermes by 254.5% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 32,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $944,000 after purchasing an additional 23,541 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Alkermes in the third quarter worth approximately $315,000. Finally, Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Alkermes in the third quarter valued at approximately $16,126,000. 95.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alkermes Stock Performance

ALKS stock opened at $29.65 on Wednesday. Alkermes plc has a 12-month low of $22.90 and a 12-month high of $32.88. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.29. The company has a current ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a PE ratio of 15.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.49.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ALKS shares. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $37.00 price target (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Alkermes in a report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Alkermes from $32.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Alkermes from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Alkermes from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $25.00 to $36.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective on shares of Alkermes in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Craig C. Hopkinson sold 58,996 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.08, for a total value of $1,774,599.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 83,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,505,664. This represents a 41.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Christian Todd Nichols sold 5,208 shares of Alkermes stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.15, for a total transaction of $151,813.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 60,703 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,769,492.45. This represents a 7.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 147,738 shares of company stock valued at $4,572,904. 4.89% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Alkermes

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.