Akero Therapeutics’ (AKRO) Buy Rating Reiterated at HC Wainwright

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at HC Wainwright in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $50.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright’s price target suggests a potential upside of 78.00% from the stock’s current price.

Separately, Citigroup initiated coverage on Akero Therapeutics in a report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Akero Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.83.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of Akero Therapeutics stock opened at $28.09 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $29.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.49 and a beta of -0.26. Akero Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $13.86 and a fifty-two week high of $37.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 17.25 and a quick ratio of 24.89.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by ($0.15). On average, equities analysts forecast that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Catriona Yale sold 8,851 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.53, for a total value of $243,668.03. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 75,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,090,380.43. This represents a 10.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 1,738 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.18, for a total transaction of $45,500.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 605,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,849,817.06. This trade represents a 0.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 428,397 shares of company stock valued at $12,997,971 in the last three months. Insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AKRO. Wellington Management Group LLP grew 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 acquiring an additional 2,782,029 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 2.9% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,077,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,053,000 after purchasing an additional 201,225 shares during the period. RTW Investments LP increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 9.0% in the third quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,919,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,829,000 after purchasing an additional 487,450 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 10.5% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,060,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,569,000 after buying an additional 384,555 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,669,923 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,702,000 after buying an additional 584,875 shares in the last quarter.

Akero Therapeutics Company Profile

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.