Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Receives Sell (D-) Rating from Weiss Ratings

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR)‘s stock had its “sell (d-)” rating restated by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued to investors on Saturday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. B. Riley boosted their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $85.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.67.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Down 5.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:NKTR opened at $60.10 on Friday. Nektar Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $6.45 and a fifty-two week high of $65.79. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.15. The company has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a PE ratio of -6.83 and a beta of 1.18.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($2.95) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($3.13) by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $11.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.42 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 163.17% and a negative return on equity of 631.43%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 1,721 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.52, for a total value of $57,687.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 17,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $585,326.24. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 6,666 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.69, for a total transaction of $311,235.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 49,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,303,777.98. This represents a 11.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 25,178 shares of company stock valued at $938,776. Company insiders own 5.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nektar Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NKTR. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 257.8% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 50,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 36,085 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $52,000. 75.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Nektar Therapeutics

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.