Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO – Get Rating) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,260,000 shares, a growth of 27.7% from the December 15th total of 4,120,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 764,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.9 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AKRO. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $30.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 7th.

Insider Transactions at Akero Therapeutics

In related news, insider Catriona Yale sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.53, for a total value of $252,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 81,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,106,472.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Akero Therapeutics news, Director Seth Loring Harrison sold 4,515 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.92, for a total value of $202,813.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 300,851 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,514,226.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Catriona Yale sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.53, for a total transaction of $252,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 81,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,106,472.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,828,309 shares of company stock worth $79,905,706. Insiders own 10.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Akero Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AKRO. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 268.0% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 736 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 536 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Akero Therapeutics in the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Parallel Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Akero Therapeutics in the second quarter worth approximately $37,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Akero Therapeutics in the third quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Amalgamated Bank acquired a new position in Akero Therapeutics in the first quarter worth approximately $56,000. 97.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ AKRO opened at $46.16 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 14.97 and a quick ratio of 14.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.74 and a beta of -0.91. Akero Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $7.52 and a 52-week high of $54.88.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.92) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.73) by ($0.19). Equities research analysts predict that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Akero Therapeutics Company Profile

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Akero Therapeutics, Inc operates as a cardio-metabolic nonalcoholic steatohepatitis company, which engages in developing pioneering medicines designed to restore metabolic balance and improve overall health. The firm’s lead product candidate, efruxifermin (EFX), is an analog of fibroblast growth factor 21, or FGF21, which is an endogenously expressed hormone that protects against cellular stress and regulates metabolism of lipids, carbohydrates and proteins throughout the body.