Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Monday.

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

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AKBA traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $1.85. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,388,439 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,994,756. Akebia Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $0.80 and a fifty-two week high of $2.48. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $1.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $403.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.04 and a beta of 0.70.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 10.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 98,546 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 9,662 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in Akebia Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth about $221,000. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 276.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 273,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 200,482 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,754,464 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,277,000 after acquiring an additional 218,172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the third quarter worth about $58,000. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Akebia Therapeutics

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.