Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) Stock Price Down 3.3% – Should You Sell?

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) dropped 3.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $53.14 and last traded at $53.81. Approximately 104,600 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 1,005,927 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.50.

Akero Therapeutics Trading Down 0.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.41 and a beta of -0.16. The business’s 50 day moving average is $44.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.68. The company has a quick ratio of 16.80, a current ratio of 16.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.01) by $1.91. Analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Akero Therapeutics

In related news, VP Patrick Lamy sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.49, for a total transaction of $339,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 33,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,075.08. This trade represents a 19.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jonathan Young sold 2,493 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.99, for a total value of $134,597.07. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 198,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,692,557.53. The trade was a 1.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 206,787 shares of company stock worth $9,507,000 over the last quarter. 7.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. RTW Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 6,859,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $190,840,000 after buying an additional 940,388 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 11.5% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,817,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,997,000 after acquiring an additional 495,119 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,230,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,256,000 after acquiring an additional 526,233 shares during the last quarter. Deep Track Capital LP raised its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 116.0% during the fourth quarter. Deep Track Capital LP now owns 1,490,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,452,000 after purchasing an additional 800,216 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 93.3% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,155,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,786,000 after purchasing an additional 557,794 shares during the last quarter.

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.