Leonteq Securities AG Purchases New Holdings in Nektar Therapeutics $NKTR

Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 8,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $338,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 93.8% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 434 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 51.3% during the fourth quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 2,541 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 862 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC boosted its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 70.6% during the third quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $148,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 1,741.2% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,565 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the third quarter valued at approximately $88,000. 75.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on NKTR shares. BTIG Research increased their price target on Nektar Therapeutics from $151.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on Nektar Therapeutics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Nektar Therapeutics from $123.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective (up from $105.00) on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, William Blair raised Nektar Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nektar Therapeutics has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.63.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Down 2.9%

NKTR opened at $66.61 on Friday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $7.99 and a 12-month high of $109.00. The stock has a market cap of $2.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.91 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a 50 day moving average of $77.98 and a 200-day moving average of $61.81.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.82) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.58) by ($0.24). Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 284.18% and a negative return on equity of 85.40%. The business had revenue of $10.86 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.69 million. As a group, analysts expect that Nektar Therapeutics will post -9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nektar Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 444 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.51, for a total transaction of $29,086.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 75,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,916,197.95. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel drug candidates through its proprietary chemistry and immunology platforms. The company focuses on polymer conjugate technology, which enables the creation of longer-acting versions of existing drugs, and on T-cell modulatory therapies aimed at harnessing the body’s immune system to treat cancer and other serious diseases.

Nektar’s product portfolio and pipeline include a range of clinical-stage and partnered programs.