Swiss National Bank Boosts Stake in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,600 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Akero Therapeutics were worth $2,660,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Akero Therapeutics by 54.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,896,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,554,000 after buying an additional 2,782,029 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,077,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,053,000 after acquiring an additional 201,225 shares during the period. RTW Investments LP lifted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,919,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,829,000 after acquiring an additional 487,450 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,392,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 4,022.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 597,993 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,636,000 after purchasing an additional 583,486 shares during the period.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AKRO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America raised Akero Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $35.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $42.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Akero Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $76.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, CFO William Richard White sold 676 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $30,338.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 61,959 shares in the company, valued at $2,780,719.92. This represents a 1.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Patrick Lamy sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total transaction of $285,150.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,910,048.76. The trade was a 12.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 341,309 shares of company stock worth $15,863,578 and have sold 252,135 shares worth $12,345,079. 7.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Up 0.7 %

AKRO stock opened at $43.58 on Friday. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.86 and a fifty-two week high of $58.40. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $45.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a current ratio of 17.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.62 and a beta of -0.19.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.99) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.98) by ($0.01). On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 EPS 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.