HC Wainwright Reiterates Buy Rating for Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR)

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by investment analysts at HC Wainwright in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $6.50 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on NKTR. B. Riley began coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $4.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, November 4th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $7.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nektar Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4.08.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

Nektar Therapeutics stock opened at $0.85 on Tuesday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $0.65 and a 12-month high of $1.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $155.87 million, a PE ratio of -1.01 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $0.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.11.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 51,115 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $0.94, for a total value of $48,048.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 326,904 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $307,289.76. This represents a 13.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 46,995 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.01, for a total transaction of $47,464.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,195,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,207,667.10. The trade was a 3.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 165,586 shares of company stock worth $159,990. 3.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nektar Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 801.4% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 469,769 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 417,651 shares during the last quarter. US Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Woodline Partners LP increased its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 187.3% in the fourth quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 4,974,512 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,626,000 after buying an additional 3,242,841 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $130,000. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP raised its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,537,355 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,430,000 after acquiring an additional 174,185 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.88% of the company’s stock.

About Nektar Therapeutics

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.