Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 27,830 Shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO - Free Report) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,704,411 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 27,830 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 5.31% of Akero Therapeutics worth $103,057,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. abrdn plc lifted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 118.7% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 269,782 shares of the company's stock worth $7,505,000 after purchasing an additional 146,424 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Akero Therapeutics by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 540,692 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,042,000 after acquiring an additional 8,096 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 732.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 30,337 shares of the company's stock worth $870,000 after acquiring an additional 26,691 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $320,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 4,022.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 597,993 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,636,000 after purchasing an additional 583,486 shares in the last quarter.

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Akero Therapeutics Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AKRO traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $37.88. 132,308 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 855,306. The stock has a market cap of $3.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.10 and a beta of -0.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $35.98. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.86 and a 12-month high of $58.40. The company has a current ratio of 17.25, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.99) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.98) by ($0.01). On average, equities research analysts forecast that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on AKRO. HC Wainwright increased their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $42.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Akero Therapeutics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $35.00 to $63.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.29.

Insider Transactions at Akero Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.23, for a total transaction of $1,056,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 624,324 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,994,934.52. This represents a 4.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director G. Walmsley Graham bought 200,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $48.00 per share, for a total transaction of $9,600,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 1,000,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $48,000,000. The trade was a 25.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 341,309 shares of company stock worth $15,863,578 and have sold 278,385 shares worth $13,345,929. Company insiders own 7.94% of the company's stock.

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.