Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Shares Up 7.3% – What’s Next?

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.34 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.19 and a beta of -0.19. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $46.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a current ratio of 17.25.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last issued 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). As a group, research analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.90, for a total value of $1,647,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 716,062 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,311,803.80. This represents a 4.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Jonathan Young sold 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $27,242.16. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 200,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,000,235.20. This trade represents a 0.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 341,309 shares of company stock valued at $15,863,578 and have sold 252,135 shares valued at $12,345,079. Insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AKRO. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 732.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 30,337 shares of the company’s stock worth $870,000 after buying an additional 26,691 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in Akero Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,327,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Akero Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $265,000. Cinctive Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,874,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 2.9% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,077,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,053,000 after purchasing an additional 201,225 shares during the period.

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.