Franklin Resources Inc. Takes Position in Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA)

Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new position in Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 167,184 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.08% of Akebia Therapeutics at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 40.7% in the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 31,221 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 9,037 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Akebia Therapeutics by 25.7% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 68,064 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 13,907 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Akebia Therapeutics by 205.8% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 46,270 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 31,137 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 117.1% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 71,965 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 38,821 shares during the period. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AKBA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Akebia Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $7.50 target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd.

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Up 2.7 %

Akebia Therapeutics stock opened at $1.90 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $414.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.26 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $1.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1.50. Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $0.80 and a 52 week high of $2.48.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $37.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.66 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.08) EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.24 earnings per share for the current year.

About Akebia Therapeutics

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapeutics for patients with kidney diseases. The company’s lead product investigational product candidate is Vafseo (vadadustat), an oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase, which is in Phase III development for the treatment of anemia due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) in dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis dependent patients.