HC Wainwright Reiterates Buy Rating for Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by research analysts at HC Wainwright in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $50.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 121.43% from the company’s previous close.

Separately, Citigroup started coverage on Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, November 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.83.

Akero Therapeutics Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of AKRO traded up $0.27 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $22.58. 179,043 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 857,701. Akero Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $15.32 and a fifty-two week high of $37.00. The business has a 50-day moving average of $29.65 and a 200-day moving average of $28.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.02 and a beta of -0.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 17.25 and a quick ratio of 17.25.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.15). On average, research analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, insider Catriona Yale sold 15,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.62, for a total value of $505,120.70. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,419,033.96. This trade represents a 17.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 63,539 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.53, for a total transaction of $2,003,384.67. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 605,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,088,798.01. The trade was a 9.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 325,674 shares of company stock valued at $10,226,385 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 54.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,896,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $226,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782,029 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,392,000. RTW Investments LP grew its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 9.0% during the third quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,919,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,829,000 after buying an additional 487,450 shares in the last quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC raised its position in Akero Therapeutics by 119.0% in the 2nd quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 719,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,882,000 after buying an additional 391,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Akero Therapeutics by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,077,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,053,000 after buying an additional 201,225 shares during the last quarter.

About Akero Therapeutics

Akero Therapeutics, Inc, together with its subsidiary, engages in the development of treatments for patients with serious metabolic diseases in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is efruxifermin (EFX), which is in Phase 3 clinical trials that protects against cellular stress and regulates the metabolism of lipids, carbohydrates, and proteins throughout the body for the treatment of biopsy-confirmed metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) patients.