Akero Therapeutics Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders bought 3,105 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 106% compared to the average volume of 1,508 call options.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Timothy Rolph sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.49, for a total value of $668,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 169,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,078,376.29. This trade represents a 6.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Patrick Lamy sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.49, for a total value of $339,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,075.08. This represents a 19.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 171,208 shares of company stock worth $7,458,344. 7.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akero Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AKRO. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. boosted its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 21.9% during the 1st quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. now owns 1,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 14.5% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 30.8% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 19.0% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $197,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America raised their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Akero Therapeutics has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.50.

Akero Therapeutics Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ AKRO opened at $54.71 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 17.25, a current ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -14.59 and a beta of -0.16. Akero Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $21.02 and a 52-week high of $58.40. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $42.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.79.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last posted 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. On average, analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.