US Bancorp DE Acquires 36,085 Shares of Nektar Therapeutics $NKTR

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE significantly increased its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 257.8% during the first quarter, now holding 50,085 shares valued at $34,000.
• Multiple institutional investors have made substantial investments in Nektar, including Nantahala Capital Management which boosted its holdings by 90.0% in the fourth quarter.
• Analysts have varying views on Nektar's stock, with target prices ranging from $60.00 to $120.00, reflecting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $88.33.

US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Free Report) by 257.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 50,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 36,085 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Nektar Therapeutics were worth $34,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Deuterium Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the first quarter worth about $381,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 253.1% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,658,745 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,128,000 after buying an additional 1,188,976 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 4,544.5% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 105,524 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 103,252 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the first quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, 49 Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the first quarter worth about $56,000. Institutional investors own 75.88% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 1,573 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.59, for a total value of $41,826.07. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 69,340 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,843,750.60. This trade represents a 2.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold a total of 2,974 shares of company stock valued at $79,079 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NKTR. William Blair reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. HC Wainwright raised 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. B. Riley raised 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, BTIG Research raised 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $88.33.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock traded down $0.3150 on Monday, hitting $26.7150. The stock had a trading volume of 326,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 853,103. Nektar Therapeutics has a one year low of $6.45 and a one year high of $37.38. The stock has a market cap of $508.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.03 and a beta of 0.95. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $22.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.12.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($2.95) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($3.13) by $0.18. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 631.43% and a negative net margin of 163.17%.The company had revenue of $11.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.42 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Nektar Therapeutics

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.