Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Sells 9,256 Shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Key Points

• The Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky has reduced its stake in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. by 32.5%, selling 9,256 shares during the first quarter and now holds 19,265 shares worth approximately $780,000.
• Insider trading reports indicate that vice president Patrick Lamy and CTO Scott A. Gangloff sold shares, with insiders collectively selling 235,906 shares valued at nearly $11.9 million over the last quarter.
• Analysts have maintained a positive outlook on Akero Therapeutics, with a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target increase to $82.50.

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lessened its holdings in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO - Free Report) by 32.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,265 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,256 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in Akero Therapeutics were worth $780,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Tema Etfs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $894,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the first quarter worth $10,404,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $840,000. RTW Investments LP boosted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 6,859,823 shares of the company's stock worth $190,840,000 after buying an additional 940,388 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $422,000.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akero Therapeutics

In other Akero Therapeutics news, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 37,837 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.05, for a total transaction of $2,045,089.85. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 556,487 shares in the company, valued at $30,078,122.35. This trade represents a 6.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Catriona Yale sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.30, for a total value of $393,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 95,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,734,836.20. This trade represents a 9.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 235,906 shares of company stock worth $11,862,790 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.07% of the company's stock.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AKRO traded down $0.98 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $48.26. 89,241 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,435,898. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 16.80 and a current ratio of 16.80. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.34 and a 52-week high of $58.40. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $52.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.59. The company has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a PE ratio of -24.77 and a beta of -0.15.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on AKRO. Bank of America raised their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $82.50.

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.