Fred Alger Management LLC Grows Holdings in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. $AKRO

Key Points

• Fred Alger Management LLC increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 95.7%, now owning approximately 0.65% of the company, worth $20.86 million.
• Akero Therapeutics has received multiple buy ratings from analysts, with a consensus price target of $81.14.
• Insider trading activity included COO Jonathan Young selling 12,500 shares at an average price of $46.08, indicating a 5.95% decrease in his ownership.

Fred Alger Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO - Free Report) by 95.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 515,324 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 251,971 shares during the quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC owned about 0.65% of Akero Therapeutics worth $20,860,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. RTW Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 6,859,823 shares of the company's stock valued at $190,840,000 after acquiring an additional 940,388 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 11.5% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,817,091 shares of the company's stock valued at $194,997,000 after acquiring an additional 495,119 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,230,644 shares of the company's stock valued at $171,256,000 after acquiring an additional 526,233 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 93.3% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,155,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,786,000 after acquiring an additional 557,794 shares during the period. Finally, Long Focus Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 729,504 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,530,000 after acquiring an additional 9,900 shares during the period.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Jonathan Young sold 586 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.02, for a total value of $25,209.72. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 196,898 shares in the company, valued at $8,470,551.96. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Catriona Yale sold 659 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.02, for a total transaction of $28,350.18. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 90,829 shares in the company, valued at $3,907,463.58. This represents a 0.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 194,945 shares of company stock worth $9,517,250. 7.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Performance

AKRO traded down $1.47 during trading on Friday, hitting $43.46. The stock had a trading volume of 1,309,138 shares, compared to its average volume of 886,647. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 12.66 and a current ratio of 12.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.73 and a beta of -0.24. The company's 50-day moving average price is $48.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.52. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.34 and a twelve month high of $58.40.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.86) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.97) by $0.11. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.81) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on AKRO shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Akero Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. HC Wainwright initiated coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, September 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, August 4th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, August 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Akero Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $81.14.

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.