Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) Lowered to Strong Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) from a sell rating to a strong sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $46.00 target price (down from $90.00) on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday. Wedbush reduced their price objective on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $71.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $81.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, July 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.93.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 30.7%

NASDAQ:XENE opened at $39.75 on Friday. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $35.97 and a 12 month high of $72.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.39 and a beta of 0.61. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.94.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.11) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.16) by $0.05. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($1.07) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Xenon Pharmaceuticals will post -4.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Xenon Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Steven Gannon sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.06, for a total transaction of $640,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $119,792.20. This trade represents a 84.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Christopher Kenney sold 7,068 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.25, for a total transaction of $425,847.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 2 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $120.50. The trade was a 99.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Corporate insiders own 2.91% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xenon Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of XENE. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,813,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $454,057,000. Siren L.L.C. boosted its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 62.2% in the first quarter. Siren L.L.C. now owns 1,318,564 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $76,674,000 after purchasing an additional 505,803 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 2.3% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 396,138 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $23,035,000 after purchasing an additional 8,980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicholas Investment Partners LP grew its stake in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 104.0% in the 4th quarter. Nicholas Investment Partners LP now owns 242,989 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,891,000 after purchasing an additional 123,891 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.45% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Xenon Pharmaceuticals

Here are the key news stories impacting Xenon Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Xenon submitted an NDA for azetukalner in focal seizures, advancing the drug toward potential commercialization in an indication that analysts believe still supports the program’s core value. Xenon Announces Azetukalner NDA Submission to FDA for Focal Seizures
• Positive Sentiment: Despite lowering their estimates, RBC Capital Markets, Wedbush, Robert W. Baird and Needham retained positive ratings, indicating analysts continue to see meaningful value in the focal-seizure opportunity. Xenon Pharmaceuticals’ Azetukalner Retains Core Epilepsy Value
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts cut price targets to ranges of $55 to $90, but maintained “outperform” or “buy” recommendations. The revisions reflect greater risk from the psychiatry program rather than a loss of confidence in the company’s epilepsy prospects.
• Negative Sentiment: Xenon voluntarily paused new enrollment in major depression and bipolar depression studies after reports of mental- and nervous-system-related adverse events. The company said the events were consistent with azetukalner’s known safety profile, but they had not been observed in the earlier Phase 2 X-NOVA depression trial, raising uncertainty about the drug’s broader psychiatric potential. Xenon Pauses Depression and Bipolar Trial Enrollment
• Negative Sentiment: The enrollment pause increases regulatory, timeline and commercial risks for a key expansion opportunity and triggered unusually heavy trading as investors reassessed azetukalner’s risk-benefit profile. Xenon Pharmaceuticals Falls After Depression Trial Enrollment Pause

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:XENE) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing medicines for neurological and psychiatric disorders. The company uses its expertise in ion channels, which regulate the electrical activity of nerve cells, to discover and advance potential treatments for conditions with significant unmet medical needs.

Xenon’s leading investigational product is azetukalner (XEN1101), an oral, small-molecule potassium-channel opener being studied in epilepsy, including focal-onset seizures, and major depressive disorder.