Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) Stake Increased by China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) by 10.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,800 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,446 shares during the quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Akero Therapeutics were worth $412,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Akero Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $565,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Akero Therapeutics by 26.1% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 107,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,514,000 after purchasing an additional 22,195 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $574,000 after buying an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in Akero Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $371,000. Finally, Rheos Capital Works Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 27.8% during the 3rd quarter. Rheos Capital Works Inc. now owns 276,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,918,000 after buying an additional 60,000 shares during the period.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of Akero Therapeutics stock opened at $54.08 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 17.25, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.42 and a beta of -0.19. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $15.32 and a 1-year high of $58.40.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.15). On average, sell-side analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Jonathan Young sold 2,503 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.79, for a total transaction of $77,067.37. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 203,783 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,274,478.57. The trade was a 1.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Patrick Lamy sold 925 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.79, for a total transaction of $28,480.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 17,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $549,847.82. The trade was a 4.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 149,303 shares of company stock valued at $6,206,412. Insiders own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AKRO. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $50.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $46.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America raised Akero Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $35.00 to $63.00 in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $42.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Akero Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $75.86.

About Akero Therapeutics

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.