Orbimed Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Nektar Therapeutics $NKTR

Orbimed Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 275,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,786,000. Orbimed Advisors LLC owned 0.81% of Nektar Therapeutics as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NKTR. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 93.8% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 434 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV acquired a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $52,000. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 90,743 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,837,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 51.3% in the 4th quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 2,541 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 862 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.88% of the company’s stock.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NKTR opened at $70.72 on Monday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $21.02 and a 1-year high of $109.00. The stock has a market cap of $2.39 billion, a PE ratio of -8.40 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.59.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.82) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.58) by ($0.24). Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 284.18% and a negative return on equity of 85.40%. The company had revenue of $10.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.69 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Nektar Therapeutics will post -9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 5,681 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $397,670.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,756 shares in the company, valued at $682,920. This trade represents a 36.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 10,000 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.32, for a total value of $603,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,923,514.40. The trade was a 13.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 21,862 shares of company stock worth $1,379,205 over the last 90 days. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NKTR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Nektar Therapeutics from $105.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $153.00 target price on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $150.00.

Nektar Therapeutics Profile

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel drug candidates through its proprietary chemistry and immunology platforms. The company focuses on polymer conjugate technology, which enables the creation of longer-acting versions of existing drugs, and on T-cell modulatory therapies aimed at harnessing the body’s immune system to treat cancer and other serious diseases.

Nektar’s product portfolio and pipeline include a range of clinical-stage and partnered programs.