Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Earns “Buy” Rating from HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. HC Wainwright currently has a $5.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Separately, BTIG Research reiterated a buy rating and set a $4.00 target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 29th.

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Up 11.2 %

AKBA traded up $0.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $1.89. 9,647,128 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,662,638. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $1.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1.25. Akebia Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $0.49 and a 1-year high of $2.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $375.88 million, a P/E ratio of -6.75 and a beta of 0.78.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.04). The company had revenue of $56.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.04) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Akebia Therapeutics will post -0.28 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akebia Therapeutics

In related news, SVP Steven Keith Burke sold 24,311 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.68, for a total value of $40,842.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 711,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,195,111.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, SVP Steven Keith Burke sold 24,311 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.68, for a total value of $40,842.48. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 711,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,195,111.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John P. Butler sold 46,570 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.58, for a total value of $73,580.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,044,580 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,230,436.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 187,893 shares of company stock valued at $300,598. Company insiders own 3.84% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akebia Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in Akebia Therapeutics by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 393,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $282,000 after buying an additional 28,300 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 176.6% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 85,186 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 54,389 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,666,861 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,915,000 after acquiring an additional 73,020 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,402,988 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,339,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd lifted its stake in Akebia Therapeutics by 282.7% in the 1st quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 102,392 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 75,635 shares during the last quarter. 27.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Akebia Therapeutics

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 adult patients.