Exome Asset Management LLC Takes $2.21 Million Position in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Exome Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 77,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,212,000. Exome Asset Management LLC owned about 0.11% of Akero Therapeutics as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 13.8% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 16,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 2,049 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $574,000 after buying an additional 2,200 shares in the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP increased its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. LMR Partners LLP now owns 20,597 shares of the company’s stock worth $591,000 after acquiring an additional 2,997 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $100,000.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akero Therapeutics

In other news, insider Catriona Yale sold 2,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.52, for a total value of $68,387.20. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 75,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,072,090.88. This represents a 3.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 24,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.14, for a total value of $778,250.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 605,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,852,685.38. This trade represents a 3.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 398,584 shares of company stock worth $12,430,272 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

AKRO stock opened at $28.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 17.25 and a quick ratio of 17.25. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $15.32 and a 1-year high of $37.00. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $30.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.08. The company has a market capitalization of $2.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.70 and a beta of -0.23.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by ($0.15). As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on AKRO. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, November 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, November 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.83.

About Akero Therapeutics

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.