Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Shares Down 6.4% – Here’s What Happened

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)’s stock price was down 6.4% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $27.50 and last traded at $27.85. Approximately 65,103 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 862,579 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.20.

Akero Therapeutics Trading Down 6.3 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.43 and a beta of -0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 24.89, a current ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The business has a 50-day moving average of $29.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.53.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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). Research analysts predict that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, CFO William Richard White sold 75,159 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $2,045,076.39. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 41,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,137,133.11. This trade represents a 64.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 1,738 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.18, for a total value of $45,500.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 605,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,849,817.06. This trade represents a 0.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 428,397 shares of company stock valued at $12,997,971 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 42.2% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 6,121,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $154,589,000 after buying an additional 1,815,569 shares during the period. Redmile Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 67.5% during the 1st quarter. Redmile Group LLC now owns 1,858,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,951,000 after buying an additional 749,226 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 19.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,669,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,702,000 after buying an additional 584,875 shares during the last quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 119.0% in the second quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 719,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,882,000 after purchasing an additional 391,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Akero Therapeutics by 10.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,060,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,569,000 after buying an additional 384,555 shares during the period.

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.