Nektar Therapeutics’ (NKTR) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

BTIG Research reissued their buy rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $178.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Friday, August 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Friday, August 21st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $153.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen raised Nektar Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Nektar Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nektar Therapeutics has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.50.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ:NKTR opened at $69.76 on Wednesday. Nektar Therapeutics has a one year low of $33.40 and a one year high of $109.00. The company has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.41 and a beta of 1.14. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $72.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.07.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.97) by $0.74. The company had revenue of $10.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.43 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 287.84% and a negative return on equity of 37.87%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Nektar Therapeutics will post -8.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 5,681 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $397,670.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $682,920. The trade was a 36.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Howard Robin sold 418 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.98, for a total value of $30,087.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 54,627 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,932,051.46. This trade represents a 0.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,823 shares of company stock valued at $1,380,558. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nektar Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NKTR. WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 53.2% in the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 25,900 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,990 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 55.9% in the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 19,183 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,339,000 after purchasing an additional 6,881 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 27.3% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,477 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $592,000 after purchasing an additional 1,816 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 8,374.9% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 2,430,784 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $169,693,000 after buying an additional 2,402,102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $5,942,000. 75.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nektar Therapeutics Company 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.