Bank of America Corp DE Lowers Stake in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Bank of America Corp DE lowered its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO - Free Report) by 58.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,264 shares of the company's stock after selling 93,294 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.09% of Akero Therapeutics worth $1,843,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in Akero Therapeutics by 764.3% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the company's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582 shares during the period. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Akero Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth $83,000. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in Akero Therapeutics by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,092 shares of the company's stock worth $197,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in Akero Therapeutics by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 7,886 shares of the company's stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in Akero Therapeutics by 32,588.0% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 8,172 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 8,147 shares during the period.

Insider Transactions at Akero Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.77, for a total value of $1,253,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 656,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,403,709.74. This trade represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Patrick Lamy sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.31, for a total transaction of $201,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,684,982.52. This represents a 10.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 163,708 shares of company stock valued at $6,666,819. Company insiders own 7.94% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AKRO shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research report on Sunday, March 2nd. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.50.

Akero Therapeutics Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:AKRO traded up $0.95 on Thursday, hitting $53.94. The company had a trading volume of 998,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 991,887. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $41.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.19. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $17.86 and a 1 year high of $58.40. The company has a quick ratio of 17.25, a current ratio of 17.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.38 and a beta of -0.12.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.01) by $1.91. Equities analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Akero Therapeutics Profile

Akero Therapeutics, Inc, together with its subsidiary, engages in the development of treatments for patients with serious metabolic diseases in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is efruxifermin (EFX), which is in Phase 3 clinical trials that protects against cellular stress and regulates the metabolism of lipids, carbohydrates, and proteins throughout the body for the treatment of biopsy-confirmed metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) patients.