Almitas Capital LLC Purchases 3,690,647 Shares of Nektar Therapeutics $NKTR

Key Points

• Almitas Capital LLC significantly increased its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 401.1% in the first quarter, acquiring over 3.6 million additional shares, now owning a total of approximately 4.6 million shares.
• Several other institutional investors have also expanded their holdings in Nektar, with significant increases coming from Woodline Partners LP and Mackenzie Financial Corp, among others.
• Nektar Therapeutics reported earnings that surpassed analysts' expectations, showing a revenue of $11.18 million for the quarter, alongside an EPS of -$2.95 that beat the consensus estimate.

Almitas Capital LLC raised its stake in Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Free Report) by 401.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,610,872 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 3,690,647 shares during the period. Nektar Therapeutics makes up about 1.0% of Almitas Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Almitas Capital LLC owned approximately 2.48% of Nektar Therapeutics worth $3,135,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. US Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 257.8% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 50,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 36,085 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 49.0% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 50,277 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 16,543 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on NKTR. William Blair reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, May 12th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $60.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. B. Riley boosted their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $60.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright boosted their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nektar Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.33.

Insider Transactions at Nektar Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.16, for a total value of $45,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 67,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,046,054.40. This represents a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 4,959 shares of company stock valued at $138,917 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 5.25% of the company's stock.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Up 11.7%

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock traded up $4.20 on Friday, hitting $40.18. 1,705,533 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 799,520. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $25.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.36. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $6.45 and a 12-month high of $40.45. The company has a market cap of $764.22 million, a PE ratio of -4.57 and a beta of 1.06.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($2.95) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($3.13) by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $11.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.42 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 163.17% and a negative return on equity of 631.43%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current year.

Nektar Therapeutics Profile

Nektar Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing medicines in the field of immunotherapy in the United States and internationally. The company is developing rezpegaldesleukin, a cytokine Treg stimulant that is in phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and ulcerative colitis, as well as phase 2b clinical trial to treat atopic dermatitis and psoriasis; and NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist, which is in phase 1 clinical trial to boost the immune system's natural ability to fight cancer.