Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) had its price target lifted by equities research analysts at Citigroup from $65.00 to $80.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 48.15% from the company’s current price.

Separately, HC Wainwright increased their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $50.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.57.

Akero Therapeutics Trading Up 4.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ AKRO opened at $54.00 on Tuesday. Akero Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $15.32 and a twelve month high of $58.40. The firm has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a PE ratio of -14.40 and a beta of -0.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.51. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.15). Analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, COO Jonathan Young sold 50,716 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.57, for a total value of $1,601,104.12. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 216,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,828,149.02. This represents a 18.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 108,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.73, for a total transaction of $3,438,453.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 605,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,209,881.41. This represents a 15.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 323,870 shares of company stock worth $11,751,090. Insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 54.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,896,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782,029 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 2.9% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,077,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,053,000 after buying an additional 201,225 shares in the last quarter. RTW Investments LP increased its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 9.0% in the third quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,919,435 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,829,000 after buying an additional 487,450 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,392,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted 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 buying an additional 583,486 shares in the last quarter.

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.