Traders Purchase Large Volume of Put Options on Xenon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:XENE)

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on XENE shares. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Chardan Capital raised Xenon Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.73.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:XENE opened at $42.51 on Thursday. Xenon Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $26.74 and a one year high of $46.60. The stock has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of -10.93 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $42.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Xenon Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Ian Mortimer sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.43, for a total transaction of $1,777,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $266,580. This trade represents a 86.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 65,302 shares of company stock worth $2,924,128 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 4.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,424,444 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $243,124,000 after purchasing an additional 24,444 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,084,034 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $183,110,000 after buying an additional 140,149 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 66.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,609,857 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $144,936,000 after acquiring an additional 1,435,096 shares during the last quarter. Braidwell LP grew its position in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 33.0% in the second quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 3,605,029 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $112,837,000 after acquiring an additional 895,154 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its stake in Xenon Pharmaceuticals by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,414,959 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $153,058,000 after acquiring an additional 233,466 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.45% of the company’s stock.

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.