Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Stock Price Down 8.6% – Should You Sell?

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) was down 8.6% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $22.39 and last traded at $22.70. Approximately 522,975 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 839,253 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.84.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AKRO. Citigroup started coverage on Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, November 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Monday, November 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.83.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 17.25, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.02. The stock has a market cap of $1.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.04 and a beta of -0.19.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by ($0.15). As a group, equities research analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 63,539 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.53, for a total value of $2,003,384.67. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 605,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,088,798.01. The trade was a 9.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Patrick Lamy sold 925 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.79, for a total transaction of $28,480.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 17,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $549,847.82. The trade was a 4.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 350,666 shares of company stock worth $11,004,636. 7.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Akero Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AKRO. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted 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 valued at $226,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782,029 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 2.9% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,077,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,053,000 after acquiring an additional 201,225 shares during the last quarter. RTW Investments LP boosted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,919,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,829,000 after acquiring an additional 487,450 shares in the last quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 8.1% in the second quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 1,499,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,188,000 after purchasing an additional 112,426 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,392,000.

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.