Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stifel Nicolaus Analyst Says

Posted by Geri Gentry on Aug 8th, 2026

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL – Get Free Report) had its target price upped by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $47.00 to $51.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the biotechnology company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective would suggest a potential downside of 5.68% from the stock’s current price.

EXEL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Zacks Research cut Exelixis from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Exelixis from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Exelixis in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered Exelixis from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Citizens Jmp lifted their price target on Exelixis from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.79.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on EXEL

Exelixis Stock Performance

Shares of EXEL opened at $54.07 on Thursday. Exelixis has a fifty-two week low of $33.76 and a fifty-two week high of $57.57. The firm has a market cap of $13.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.00, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $54.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.94.

Exelixis (NASDAQ:EXEL – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $628.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.40 million. Exelixis had a net margin of 35.33% and a return on equity of 42.17%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Exelixis will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Brenda Hefti sold 6,625 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.21, for a total transaction of $332,641.25. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 106,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,360,520.02. This represents a 5.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Patrick J. Haley sold 32,110 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.81, for a total value of $1,599,399.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 357,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,813,948.78. This represents a 8.24% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 130,824 shares of company stock valued at $6,555,231. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelixis

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Exelixis in the second quarter valued at $1,581,991,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Exelixis by 48.8% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,658,388 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $598,647,000 after purchasing an additional 4,477,029 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Exelixis by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,054,743 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $265,379,000 after purchasing an additional 94,218 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Exelixis by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,299,597 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $184,391,000 after purchasing an additional 39,920 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Exelixis by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,206,656 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $184,378,000 after purchasing an additional 995,949 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.27% of the company’s stock.

Exelixis News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Exelixis this week:

Positive Sentiment: Exelixis reported second-quarter EPS of $0.91, ahead of the $0.85-$0.86 analyst consensus and up from $0.75 a year earlier. Revenue rose 10.6% year over year to approximately $628.7 million, while the company continues to benefit from its established cabozantinib business. Exelixis Q2 earnings
Positive Sentiment: The company launched a new Phase 3 trial testing zanzalintinib in residual colorectal cancer, expanding the potential market for its pipeline and providing another long-term growth catalyst. Exelixis colorectal cancer trial
Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen reaffirmed a Buy rating and a $55 price target, citing resilience in cabozantinib, cost discipline and upside from zanzalintinib despite near-term guidance pressure.
Neutral Sentiment: Stifel raised its price target from $47 to $51 but retained a Hold rating. Its target remains below the recent trading level, suggesting limited near-term upside in the analyst’s view.
Negative Sentiment: Exelixis lowered the midpoint of its 2026 revenue outlook by $50 million, primarily because the NET launch has been slower than expected. Although the EPS beat was encouraging, the revenue miss and reduced outlook are weighing on growth expectations. Exelixis 2026 guidance
Negative Sentiment: Leerink Partners downgraded EXEL from Outperform to Market Perform and set a $52 price target, below the recent share price. Leerink Partners downgrade
Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research maintains a Strong Sell rating and made small reductions to its FY2026-FY2028 EPS forecasts, including a FY2026 estimate of $3.12 versus the broader consensus of $3.15.

Exelixis Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Exelixis, Inc is a biotechnology company specializing in the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule therapies primarily for the treatment of cancer. Building on a platform that leverages model organism genetics and high-throughput screening, the company focuses its research on kinase inhibitors that modulate critical signaling pathways involved in tumor growth and metastasis. Exelixis’s translational research approach aims to advance novel compounds from early-stage discovery through clinical development and regulatory approval.

The company’s most recognized products include CABOMETYX® (cabozantinib), approved for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma and hepatocellular carcinoma, and COMETRIQ® (cabozantinib) for metastatic medullary thyroid cancer.