Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA) Receives $5.25 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $5.25.

AKBA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Akebia Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics from $6.00 to $4.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $4.00 price target on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Akebia Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akebia Therapeutics

In other Akebia Therapeutics news, CEO John P. Butler acquired 69,270 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $1.25 per share, with a total value of $86,587.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 3,367,064 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,208,830. This represents a 2.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Richard C. Malabre sold 49,524 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.39, for a total value of $68,838.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 299,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $416,152.10. The trade was a 14.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AKBA. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Akebia Therapeutics by 23.0% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,393 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Akebia Therapeutics by 26.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 23,279 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 4,798 shares in the last quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC increased its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 49.5% in the 3rd quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 18,232 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 6,034 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 164,655 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 8,103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 16.8% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 59,502 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $217,000 after buying an additional 8,568 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

Akebia Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AKBA opened at $1.41 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $376.37 million, a PE ratio of -70.21 and a beta of 0.37. Akebia Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $1.14 and a fifty-two week high of $4.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 1.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $1.36 and a 200-day moving average of $1.71.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by ($0.02). Akebia Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 16.70% and a negative net margin of 2.26%.The company had revenue of $57.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.37 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Akebia Therapeutics will post -0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for patients with kidney disease. The company’s lead product candidate, vadadustat, is an investigational oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor designed to treat anemia associated with chronic kidney disease in both dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis patients. Akebia’s research and development efforts also extend to preclinical programs targeting nephrology and related metabolic disorders.

Since its founding in 2007, Akebia has pursued strategic collaborations to advance its clinical pipeline and expand its market reach.