Akero Therapeutics, Inc. $AKRO Shares Acquired by Invesco Ltd.

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 18.9%, acquiring an additional 18,658 shares, bringing its total ownership to 117,121 shares valued at approximately $4.74 million.
• Insider transactions reported significant sales, with CEO Andrew Cheng selling 37,837 shares for over $2 million, reflecting a 6.37% decrease in his position.
• Analysts have a consensus buy rating for Akero Therapeutics, with a current price target average of $81.57, reflecting positive sentiment in the market about the stock's potential.

Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO - Free Report) by 18.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,121 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 18,658 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned approximately 0.15% of Akero Therapeutics worth $4,741,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. RTW Investments LP increased its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 6,859,823 shares of the company's stock worth $190,840,000 after acquiring an additional 940,388 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 14.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,230,644 shares of the company's stock worth $171,256,000 after buying an additional 526,233 shares in the last quarter. Deep Track Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 116.0% during the fourth quarter. Deep Track Capital LP now owns 1,490,000 shares of the company's stock worth $41,452,000 after buying an additional 800,216 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 93.3% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,155,787 shares of the company's stock worth $46,786,000 after buying an additional 557,794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $18,059,000.

Insider Activity at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, insider Catriona Yale sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.23, for a total value of $542,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 92,231 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,001,687.13. This represents a 9.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Jonathan Young sold 12,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.79, for a total transaction of $597,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 197,484 shares in the company, valued at $9,437,760.36. The trade was a 5.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 222,406 shares of company stock worth $11,612,680. 7.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Akero Therapeutics Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of AKRO stock traded down $1.29 on Tuesday, hitting $45.44. 797,802 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 934,066. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $50.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.82. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.63 billion, a PE ratio of -22.72 and a beta of -0.24. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.86) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.97) by $0.11. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.81) EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $76.00 target price for the company. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 4th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Akero Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price 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. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $81.57.

Akero Therapeutics Company 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.