Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Rating Increased to Hold at StockNews.com

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

Separately, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $7.50 price target on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd.

Akebia Therapeutics Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ AKBA traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $2.03. 1,617,986 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,062,169. Akebia Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $0.80 and a 1 year high of $2.48. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $1.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1.39. The stock has a market cap of $442.91 million, a P/E ratio of -8.83 and a beta of 0.70.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $37.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.66 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Akebia Therapeutics will post -0.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Akebia Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in Akebia Therapeutics by 40.7% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 31,221 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 9,037 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Empirical Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapeutics for patients with kidney diseases. The company’s lead product investigational product candidate is Vafseo (vadadustat), an oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase, which is in Phase III development for the treatment of anemia due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) in dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis dependent patients.