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

Shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKROGet Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $46.00 to $96.00. The stock had previously closed at $51.71, but opened at $54.63. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Akero Therapeutics shares last traded at $55.10, with a volume of 920,635 shares changing hands.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $56.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $50.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.57.

Read Our Latest Report on Akero Therapeutics

Insider Activity at Akero Therapeutics

In other news, insider Catriona Yale sold 9,061 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.73, for a total value of $251,261.53. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 74,158 shares in the company, valued at $2,056,401.34. This represents a 10.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Jonathan Young sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 218,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,112,866.49. This trade represents a 4.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 257,620 shares of company stock valued at $8,076,127 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Simplify Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. now owns 283,766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,141,000 after acquiring an additional 38,279 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in Akero Therapeutics by 732.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 30,337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $870,000 after purchasing an additional 26,691 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 4,022.1% in 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 during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its position in Akero Therapeutics by 127.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 127,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,662,000 after buying an additional 71,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Propel Bio Management LLC lifted its position in Akero Therapeutics by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Propel Bio Management LLC now owns 343,729 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,862,000 after buying an additional 15,977 shares in the last quarter.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Down 0.5 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a current ratio of 17.25. The company has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.73 and a beta of -0.19.

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

About Akero Therapeutics

(Get Free Report)

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.

Recommended Stories

Receive News & Ratings for Akero Therapeutics Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Akero Therapeutics and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.