Short Interest in Xencor, Inc. (NASDAQ:XNCR) Expands By 21.4%

Xencor, Inc. (NASDAQ:XNCR - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,990,000 shares, a growth of 21.4% from the December 31st total of 4,110,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 603,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.3 days.

Xencor Stock Up 0.8 %

XNCR stock traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $17.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 524,855 shares, compared to its average volume of 528,839. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 6.23 and a quick ratio of 6.23. The company's fifty day moving average price is $22.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.55 and a beta of 0.70. Xencor has a twelve month low of $15.31 and a twelve month high of $27.24.

Xencor (NASDAQ:XNCR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.71) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.98) by $0.27. The business had revenue of $10.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.59 million. Xencor had a negative return on equity of 30.92% and a negative net margin of 232.77%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 81.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.40) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Xencor will post -3.68 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on XNCR shares. Piper Sandler upgraded Xencor from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $20.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $34.00 price objective (up from $32.00) on shares of Xencor in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $38.00 price target on shares of Xencor in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Xencor from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Xencor in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $37.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $34.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Xencor news, Director Alan Bruce Montgomery sold 1,421 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.03, for a total transaction of $38,409.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at $247,054.20. The trade was a 13.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP John R. Desjarlais sold 68,684 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.48, for a total value of $1,612,700.32. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 200,104 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,698,441.92. This trade represents a 25.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 136,050 shares of company stock valued at $3,277,609. 5.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Xencor

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Xencor during the second quarter worth $36,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Xencor by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,147 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 508 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Xencor by 63.5% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,123 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 1,213 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in Xencor in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $205,000. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Xencor by 64.2% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,893 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $239,000 after acquiring an additional 4,650 shares during the last quarter.

About Xencor

Xencor, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery and development of engineered monoclonal antibody and cytokine therapeutics to treat patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company provides Sotrovimab that targets the SARS-CoV-2 virus; Ultomiris for the treatment of patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria and atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome; and Monjuvi for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.