Nektar Therapeutics’ (NKTR) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at HC Wainwright

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at HC Wainwright in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $6.50 target price on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. B. Riley started coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $4.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, November 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $7.00 price objective on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nektar Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4.08.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NKTR opened at $0.78 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $143.90 million, a PE ratio of -0.93 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $0.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.11. Nektar Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $0.65 and a twelve month high of $1.93.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nektar Therapeutics

In other news, insider Mark Andrew Wilson sold 33,402 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $0.90, for a total value of $30,061.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 351,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $316,702.80. This trade represents a 8.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 46,995 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.01, for a total transaction of $47,464.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,195,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,207,667.10. The trade was a 3.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 165,586 shares of company stock worth $159,990 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NKTR. Nantahala Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 90.0% in the fourth quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC now owns 7,810,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,263,000 after acquiring an additional 3,700,000 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 187.3% in the fourth quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 4,974,512 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,626,000 after acquiring an additional 3,242,841 shares during the last quarter. Altium Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 26,172.0% in the fourth quarter. Altium Capital Management LLC now owns 3,000,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,790,000 after acquiring an additional 2,988,581 shares during the last quarter. 22NW LP acquired a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $2,038,000. Finally, Eventide Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 24.8% during the third quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 9,400,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $12,220,000 after buying an additional 1,870,904 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.88% of the company’s stock.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing medicines in the field of immunotherapy in the United States and internationally. The company is developing rezpegaldesleukin, a cytokine Treg stimulant that is in phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and ulcerative colitis, as well as phase 2b clinical trial to treat atopic dermatitis and psoriasis; and NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist, which is in phase 1 clinical trial to boost the immune system's natural ability to fight cancer.