Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Free Report) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a report issued on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $6.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company's stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $6.50 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, B. Riley assumed coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $4.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nektar Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $4.92.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

NKTR traded down $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $0.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,072,893 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,860,337. The stock has a market cap of $162.36 million, a PE ratio of -1.05 and a beta of 0.65. Nektar Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $0.65 and a fifty-two week high of $1.93. The business's 50-day moving average is $0.88 and its 200-day moving average is $1.07.

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Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $29.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.65 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 180.70% and a negative return on equity of 173.28%. Analysts expect that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Nektar Therapeutics

In related news, insider Mark Andrew Wilson sold 33,402 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $0.90, for a total transaction of $30,061.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 351,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $316,702.80. This represents a 8.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 51,115 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $0.94, for a total transaction of $48,048.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 326,904 shares in the company, valued at approximately $307,289.76. This trade represents a 13.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 118,591 shares of company stock valued at $112,525. 3.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Two Sigma Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 56.3% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC now owns 27,654 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 9,958 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Investment Services LLC purchased a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. US Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Valence8 US LP purchased a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. 75.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.