Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Upgraded by Zacks Research to Hold Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price target on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Akebia Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $4.00 target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $4.67.

Akebia Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of AKBA opened at $1.42 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $1.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1.30. The stock has a market cap of $380.93 million, a PE ratio of -17.75 and a beta of 0.23. Akebia Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $0.82 and a 1-year high of $4.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.02). Akebia Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 62.72% and a negative net margin of 8.83%.The company had revenue of $53.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $51.67 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Akebia Therapeutics will post -0.1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Akebia Therapeutics

In related news, CFO Erik Ostrowski sold 56,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.11, for a total transaction of $62,181.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 616,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $684,443.76. The trade was a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Akebia Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AKBA. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 697.8% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 20,622 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 18,037 shares in the last quarter. Caption Management LLC purchased a new stake in Akebia Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Akebia Therapeutics by 23.0% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,393 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Polymer Capital Management US LLC boosted its holdings in Akebia Therapeutics by 49.5% in the third quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 18,232 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 6,034 shares in the last quarter. 33.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for patients with kidney disease. The company’s lead product candidate, vadadustat, is an investigational oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor designed to treat anemia associated with chronic kidney disease in both dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis patients. Akebia’s research and development efforts also extend to preclinical programs targeting nephrology and related metabolic disorders.

Since its founding in 2007, Akebia has pursued strategic collaborations to advance its clinical pipeline and expand its market reach.