Akero Therapeutics’ (AKRO) Sell (D-) Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

Weiss Ratings reiterated their sell (d-) rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on AKRO. HC Wainwright initiated coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, September 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 4th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Akero Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $76.00 price target for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.38.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AKRO opened at $53.88 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.78. Akero Therapeutics has a one year low of $21.34 and a one year high of $58.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 12.66 and a current ratio of 12.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -26.94 and a beta of -0.29.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.86) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.97) by $0.11. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.81) earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.99 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Akero Therapeutics news, insider Catriona Yale sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.95, for a total value of $529,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 91,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,844,289.60. This trade represents a 9.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.25, for a total transaction of $1,297,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 475,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,573,938.50. This trade represents a 5.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 149,253 shares of company stock valued at $6,982,414. Company insiders own 7.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 17.7% in the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 21.9% in the first quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. now owns 1,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 14.5% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,000 after buying an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 19.0% in the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 6.3% in the first quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $305,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter.

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.