Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Stock Has Average Price Target of $138.50 According to Analysts

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $138.50.

NKTR has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Friday, August 21st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $178.00 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Wedbush cut their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $80.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $153.00 target price for the company.

Nektar Therapeutics Trading Down 3.1%

Shares of NKTR opened at $42.22 on Thursday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $33.40 and a 52 week high of $109.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.30 and a beta of 1.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $68.97 and a 200-day moving average of $70.81.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.97) by $0.74. The business had revenue of $10.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.43 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 37.87% and a negative net margin of 287.84%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Nektar Therapeutics will post -8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Howard Robin sold 418 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.98, for a total transaction of $30,087.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 54,627 shares in the company, valued at $3,932,051.46. The trade was a 0.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at $52,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the first quarter worth about $67,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $206,000. Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth about $208,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth about $209,000. 75.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing medicines that use the body’s immune system to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company’s research programs are based on proprietary drug-design and immunology technologies intended to improve the activity, targeting, or dosing of therapeutic agents.

Nektar’s pipeline has included NKTR-255, an investigational interleukin-15 receptor agonist designed to activate natural killer cells and support antitumor immune responses.