Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Makes New Investment in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Key Points

• Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB acquired 7,676 shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc., valued at approximately $311,000, during the first quarter of the year.
• Insider Timothy Rolph sold 25,000 shares for $1.38 million, resulting in a 12.84% decrease in his ownership, while total insider sales over the last 90 days amounted to $11.86 million.
• Analysts have set a consensus price target of $82.50 for Akero Therapeutics, with several firms issuing "buy" ratings and Bank of America raising its price objective to $64.00.

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new stake in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 7,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $311,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AKRO. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in Akero Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 764.3% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,582 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 19.0% in the 1st quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,664 shares of the company's stock valued at $114,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV purchased a new position in Akero Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at about $120,000.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Catriona Yale sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.30, for a total transaction of $393,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 95,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,734,836.20. This represents a 9.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 37,837 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.05, for a total value of $2,045,089.85. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 556,487 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,078,122.35. This represents a 6.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 235,906 shares of company stock valued at $11,862,790. 7.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America upped their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Akero Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $82.50.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ:AKRO traded down $0.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $48.37. The company had a trading volume of 867,371 shares, compared to its average volume of 872,309. The company has a market capitalization of $3.86 billion, a PE ratio of -24.81 and a beta of -0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 16.80, a current ratio of 16.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.34 and a 52-week high of $58.40. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $52.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.99.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.01) by $1.91. As a group, research analysts expect that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

About Akero Therapeutics

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.