Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Stock Price Up 7.3% – Here’s Why

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)’s stock price rose 7.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $41.72 and last traded at $41.48. Approximately 1,160,908 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 40% from the average daily volume of 827,595 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.64.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $56.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Akero Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $35.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $42.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Akero Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $76.29.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $47.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 17.25 and a quick ratio of 17.25. The stock has a market cap of $2.92 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.79 and a beta of -0.18.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.99) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.98) by ($0.01). Sell-side analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.90, for a total transaction of $1,647,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 716,062 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,311,803.80. This represents a 4.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director G. Walmsley Graham purchased 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $48.00 per share, with a total value of $9,600,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,000,000 shares in the company, valued at $48,000,000. This represents a 25.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders bought 341,309 shares of company stock worth $15,863,578 and sold 242,135 shares worth $12,064,779. Company insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AKRO. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $197,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 7,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 621 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Akero Therapeutics by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 41,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,153,000 after acquiring an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in Akero Therapeutics by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 21,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank increased its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 95,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,660,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares during 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.