Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Given "Buy" Rating at HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO - Free Report) in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $50.00 price objective on the stock.

Separately, Citigroup started coverage on Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, November 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.83.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

AKRO traded up $1.13 during trading on Thursday, hitting $25.14. 1,229,179 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 996,689. Akero Therapeutics has a one year low of $15.32 and a one year high of $37.00. The stock's fifty day moving average is $29.18 and its 200 day moving average is $27.94. The company has a quick ratio of 17.25, a current ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market cap of $1.75 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.70 and a beta of -0.19.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.15). As a group, equities analysts predict that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Catriona Yale sold 4,515 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.53, for a total value of $146,872.95. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 74,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,412,359.74. This trade represents a 5.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jonathan Young sold 10,000 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.13, for a total transaction of $321,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 206,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,627,969.18. The trade was a 4.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 262,135 shares of company stock valued at $8,223,000 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 7.94% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 54.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,896,632 shares of the company's stock worth $226,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782,029 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,392,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 4,022.1% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 597,993 shares of the company's stock worth $16,636,000 after buying an additional 583,486 shares during the period. RTW Investments LP increased its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 9.0% during the third quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,919,435 shares of the company's stock valued at $169,829,000 after purchasing an additional 487,450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Long Focus Capital Management LLC increased its position in Akero Therapeutics by 119.0% during the 2nd quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 719,604 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,882,000 after buying an additional 391,000 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.