Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) Given Consensus Rating of “Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the nine research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $76.29.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America upgraded Akero Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $35.00 to $63.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group raised their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $42.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. HC Wainwright raised their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of AKRO opened at $44.15 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $42.10 and its 200 day moving average is $33.84. The company has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of -11.77 and a beta of -0.19. Akero Therapeutics 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) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.99) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.98) by ($0.01). Research analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Akero Therapeutics

In other news, COO Jonathan Young sold 10,000 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.03, for a total value of $280,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 218,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,112,866.49. The trade was a 4.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO William Richard White sold 676 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $30,338.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 61,959 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,780,719.92. The trade was a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 252,209 shares of company stock worth $12,190,753. 7.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AKRO. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 54.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,896,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,554,000 after acquiring an additional 2,782,029 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,392,000. RTW Investments LP boosted its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 6,859,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $190,840,000 after acquiring an additional 940,388 shares during the period. Deep Track Capital LP raised its position in Akero Therapeutics by 116.0% during the 4th quarter. Deep Track Capital LP now owns 1,490,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,452,000 after purchasing an additional 800,216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Akero Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at $18,059,000.

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.