Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Shares Gap Up Following Insider Buying Activity

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Friday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $43.58, but opened at $45.38. Akero Therapeutics shares last traded at $43.15, with a volume of 76,195 shares traded.

Specifically, Director G. Walmsley Graham bought 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $43.55 per share, with a total value of $2,177,500.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,200,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,260,000. This trade represents a 4.35 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director G. Walmsley Graham purchased 91,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $44.75 per share, with a total value of $4,086,077.75. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,091,309 shares in the company, valued at $48,836,077.75. This trade represents a 9.13 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Akero Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $35.00 to $63.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $42.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup raised their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $56.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Akero Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $76.29.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Down 2.0 %

The company has a quick ratio of 17.25, a current ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.02. The company has a market capitalization of $3.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.39 and a beta of -0.19.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.99) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.98) by ($0.01). As a group, equities analysts predict that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AKRO. Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth about $211,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the third quarter valued at approximately $491,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 26,691 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 117.8% in the third quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 269,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,735,000 after buying an additional 145,813 shares during the period. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the third quarter worth approximately $1,327,000.

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.