Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Trading Up 10.1% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Akebia Therapeutics shares jumped 10.1% to $3.32 after trading below that mark previously, with a total of approximately 3.87 million shares exchanged during this trading session.
• Wall Street analysts have generally upgraded their ratings on the stock, with HC Wainwright setting a buy rating and a price target of $8.00, while the average target price among analysts is $6.75.
• The company recently reported quarterly earnings, beating estimates by $0.06 with revenue of $57.34 million, exceeding expectations of $44.88 million, indicating strong growth potential in the biopharmaceutical sector.

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA - Get Free Report) shares rose 10.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $3.32 and last traded at $3.32. Approximately 3,870,703 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 7% from the average daily volume of 4,182,618 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.01.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Akebia Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. HC Wainwright assumed coverage on Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $8.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised Akebia Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 3rd. Finally, Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Akebia Therapeutics in a report on Monday, April 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $7.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $6.75.

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Up 13.6%

The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $3.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.69. The company has a market capitalization of $898.23 million, a PE ratio of -16.28 and a beta of 0.96.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $57.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $44.88 million. Research analysts expect that Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akebia Therapeutics

In other Akebia Therapeutics news, CAO Richard C. Malabre sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.01, for a total transaction of $60,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 266,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,070,325.14. This trade represents a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Erik Ostrowski sold 41,314 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.67, for a total transaction of $151,622.38. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 503,586 shares in the company, valued at $1,848,160.62. This represents a 7.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 69,648 shares of company stock valued at $258,841 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Akebia Therapeutics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mariner LLC acquired a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Unified Investment Management increased its stake in Akebia Therapeutics by 47.8% during the 1st quarter. Unified Investment Management now owns 17,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 5,500 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Akebia Therapeutics by 51.9% in the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 19,311 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 6,595 shares in the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 23.0% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,393 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company's stock.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

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 patients.

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