Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Trading 12.1% Higher – What’s Next?

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR)’s stock price rose 12.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $9.24 and last traded at $9.86. Approximately 157,466 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 4% from the average daily volume of 150,723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.79.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $6.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $1.00 to $2.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, May 12th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $6.50 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Nektar Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4.50.

Nektar Therapeutics Trading Up 19.6%

The company has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of -12.77 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s fifty day moving average is $0.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $0.88.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($0.04). Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 173.28% and a negative net margin of 180.70%. The business had revenue of $10.46 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.61 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.18) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Nektar Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NKTR. Two Sigma Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 56.3% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC now owns 27,654 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 9,958 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Investment Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. US Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Algert Global LLC purchased a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 257.8% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 50,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 36,085 shares during the period. 75.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nektar Therapeutics Company Profile

Nektar Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing medicines in the field of immunotherapy in the United States and internationally. The company is developing rezpegaldesleukin, a cytokine Treg stimulant that is in phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and ulcerative colitis, as well as phase 2b clinical trial to treat atopic dermatitis and psoriasis; and NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist, which is in phase 1 clinical trial to boost the immune system's natural ability to fight cancer.