Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Trading Up 4.1%

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)’s share price traded up 4.1% on Friday . The company traded as high as $22.67 and last traded at $22.67. 6,511 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 99% from the average session volume of 1,074,411 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $50.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Akero Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $59.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 13th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Akero Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $41.13.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 30.12, a quick ratio of 30.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $20.82 and a 200-day moving average of $22.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.25 and a beta of -0.31.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 10th. The company reported ($0.90) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.90). As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Akero Therapeutics

In related news, COO Jonathan Young sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.38, for a total value of $121,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 263,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,419,400.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Akero Therapeutics news, COO Jonathan Young sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.38, for a total transaction of $121,900.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 263,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,419,400.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 7,894 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.64, for a total value of $178,720.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 581,553 shares in the company, valued at $13,166,359.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,635 shares of company stock valued at $695,716 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its position in Akero Therapeutics by 30.0% during the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 28,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 6,590 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at about $270,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 54,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,369,000 after acquiring an additional 6,113 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 42.2% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 6,121,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $154,589,000 after acquiring an additional 1,815,569 shares during the period. Finally, Redmile Group LLC grew its position 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 valued at $46,951,000 after acquiring an additional 749,226 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.