Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on the stock from $56.00 to $73.00. The stock had previously closed at $51.71, but opened at $54.63. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Akero Therapeutics shares last traded at $55.10, with a volume of 920,635 shares traded.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on AKRO. HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $50.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Citigroup lifted their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, insider Catriona Yale sold 15,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.62, for a total transaction of $505,120.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,419,033.96. This trade represents a 17.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Patrick Lamy sold 925 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.79, for a total value of $28,480.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 17,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $549,847.82. This trade represents a 4.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 262,135 shares of company stock valued at $8,223,000 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Akero Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. bought a new stake in Akero Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at $347,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Akero Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at $565,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 26.1% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 107,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,514,000 after purchasing an additional 22,195 shares during the period. Perceptive Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 1,499,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,188,000 after buying an additional 112,426 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 12.4% in the third 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 during the period.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $28.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.14. The firm has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -14.60 and a beta of -0.19. The company has a quick ratio of 17.25, a current ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by ($0.15). Sell-side analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.96 EPS for the current year.

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.