Howard Robin Sells 10,000 Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Stock

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) CEO Howard Robin sold 10,000 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.32, for a total transaction of $603,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 65,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,923,514.40. This represents a 13.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NKTR traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $60.98. 909,592 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 881,840. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $8.27 and a 12 month high of $109.00. The company has a market cap of $2.06 billion, a PE ratio of -7.24 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $73.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.16.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.82) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.58) by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $10.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.69 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 284.18% and a negative return on equity of 85.40%. On average, analysts anticipate that Nektar Therapeutics will post -9.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NKTR. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 336.9% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,640,851 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,463,000 after buying an additional 2,807,595 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at about $68,000. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 23.3% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 221,761 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $151,000 after acquiring an additional 41,948 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $367,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $65,000. 75.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Nektar Therapeutics from $105.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. HC Wainwright increased their price target on Nektar Therapeutics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. BTIG Research boosted their price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $151.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.62.

Nektar Therapeutics Company Profile

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel drug candidates through its proprietary chemistry and immunology platforms. The company focuses on polymer conjugate technology, which enables the creation of longer-acting versions of existing drugs, and on T-cell modulatory therapies aimed at harnessing the body’s immune system to treat cancer and other serious diseases.

Nektar’s product portfolio and pipeline include a range of clinical-stage and partnered programs.