Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics from $4.00 to $6.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $7.50 target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a report on Friday, March 14th.

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Up 6.3 %

NASDAQ AKBA opened at $2.55 on Monday. Akebia Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $0.80 and a 52 week high of $2.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $556.36 million, a PE ratio of -11.09 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $2.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1.80.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $46.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.36 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Akebia Therapeutics will post -0.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Steven Keith Burke sold 50,506 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.10, for a total transaction of $106,062.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 816,234 shares in the company, valued at $1,714,091.40. This represents a 5.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John P. Butler sold 144,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.10, for a total transaction of $302,925.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,604,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,469,093. This represents a 5.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 280,579 shares of company stock worth $589,216 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akebia Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AKBA. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. PDS Planning Inc purchased a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Mariner LLC purchased a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapeutics for patients with kidney diseases. The company’s lead product investigational product candidate is Vafseo (vadadustat), an oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase, which is in Phase III development for the treatment of anemia due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) in dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis dependent patients.