274,452 Shares in Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA) Bought by Balyasny Asset Management L.P.

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 274,452 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $521,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned 0.13% of Akebia Therapeutics at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Akebia Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. PDS Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Mariner LLC purchased a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in Akebia Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Akebia Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Akebia Therapeutics Trading Up 7.3%

Shares of Akebia Therapeutics stock traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $2.80. The stock had a trading volume of 6,733,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,863,542. Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $0.80 and a 1 year high of $2.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $735.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.17 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.02.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.06. The company had revenue of $57.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $44.88 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.3 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, April 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $7.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of Akebia Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 3rd. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $7.50 price objective on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Akebia Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $6.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $6.63.

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 patients.