Canaccord Genuity Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Stock

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) had its price target lifted by investment analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group from $56.00 to $73.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 42.11% from the company’s previous close.

AKRO has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup raised their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $50.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.83.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of AKRO opened at $51.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a PE ratio of -13.70 and a beta of -0.19. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $28.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 17.25 and a quick ratio of 17.25. Akero Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $15.32 and a 12-month high of $58.40.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.90) by ($0.15). Equities research analysts forecast that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, COO Jonathan Young sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.03, for a total value of $280,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 218,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,112,866.49. This represents a 4.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Catriona Yale sold 15,485 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.62, for a total value of $505,120.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 74,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,419,033.96. This trade represents a 17.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 262,135 shares of company stock valued at $8,223,000. Company insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AKRO. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Akero Therapeutics by 54.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,896,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $226,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782,029 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 2.9% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,077,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,053,000 after buying an additional 201,225 shares in the last quarter. RTW Investments LP lifted its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,919,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,829,000 after acquiring an additional 487,450 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Akero Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,392,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 4,022.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 597,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,636,000 after acquiring an additional 583,486 shares in the last quarter.

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.