Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Purchases 80,034 Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) by 12.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 730,875 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 80,034 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Nektar Therapeutics were worth $680,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Valence8 US LP purchased a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 42.4% in the 4th quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC now owns 50,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 14,895 shares during the period. 75.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ NKTR opened at $0.86 on Friday. Nektar Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $0.65 and a twelve month high of $1.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.74 million, a PE ratio of -1.03 and a beta of 0.65. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $0.86 and its 200 day moving average is $1.06.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by $0.33. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 173.28% and a negative net margin of 180.70%. The company had revenue of $29.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.65 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Nektar Therapeutics

In related news, insider Mark Andrew Wilson sold 33,402 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $0.90, for a total transaction of $30,061.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 351,892 shares in the company, valued at $316,702.80. The trade was a 8.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 67,476 shares of company stock worth $64,477 over the last ninety days. 3.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. B. Riley assumed coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $4.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $6.50 target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Oppenheimer raised Nektar Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $6.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $4.92.

Nektar Therapeutics Profile

Nektar Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing medicines in the field of immunotherapy in the United States and internationally. The company is developing rezpegaldesleukin, a cytokine Treg stimulant that is in phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and ulcerative colitis, as well as phase 2b clinical trial to treat atopic dermatitis and psoriasis; and NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist, which is in phase 1 clinical trial to boost the immune system's natural ability to fight cancer.