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

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:XENE) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 4,063 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 2,362% compared to the typical daily volume of 165 put options.

Insider Activity at Xenon Pharmaceuticals

In other Xenon Pharmaceuticals news, insider Christopher John Kenney sold 1,410 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.23, for a total transaction of $77,874.30. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,069 shares in the company, valued at $390,420.87. The trade was a 16.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Andrea Difabio sold 1,342 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.23, for a total transaction of $74,118.66. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 7,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $403,234.23. This represents a 15.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 336,707 shares of company stock worth $19,622,565. Company insiders own 4.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 442,732 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $14,854,000 after purchasing an additional 32,486 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 73.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 436,020 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $13,647,000 after buying an additional 184,873 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $577,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 1,294.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 970,343 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,369,000 after buying an additional 900,746 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey purchased a new position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $543,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.45% of the company’s stock.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of XENE opened at $55.17 on Friday. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $26.74 and a 1-year high of $63.95. The company has a 50-day moving average of $44.79 and a 200 day moving average of $42.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.65 and a beta of 0.91.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.31) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.20) by ($0.11). During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.84) EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Xenon Pharmaceuticals will post -3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on XENE. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $58.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $97.00 target price on Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $56.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $71.88.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel, small‐molecule drugs targeting ion channels in the central and peripheral nervous system. The company’s research focus centers on neurological and pain disorders—including epilepsy, migraine, and neuropathic pain—by modulating key ion‐channel proteins to restore normal neuronal function. Xenon’s scientific platform draws upon advances in ion‐channel biology and structure‐based drug design to identify and optimize therapeutic candidates with the potential for improved safety and efficacy profiles compared with existing treatments.

The company’s pipeline comprises multiple preclinical and clinical programs.