Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.74 EPS

Key Points

• Nektar Therapeutics beat earnings expectations: The company reported a quarterly loss of $1.23 per share, $0.74 better than analysts’ estimate, while revenue of $10.13 million came in slightly below the $10.43 million consensus.
• Analysts remain broadly positive: Ten analysts rate the stock a Buy, one rates it Hold and one rates it Sell, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $150 versus the reported trading price of $75.92.
• Insiders have been selling shares: Company insiders sold 21,862 shares worth approximately $1.38 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own 75.88% of the stock.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.97) by $0.74, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $10.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 85.40% and a negative net margin of 284.18%.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

NKTR traded down $0.11 during trading on Thursday, reaching $75.92. 623,957 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,046,597. The business's 50 day moving average price is $67.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.75. The company has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.02 and a beta of 1.14. Nektar Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $25.01 and a 1 year high of $109.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $151.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $153.00 price target on the stock. Wedbush reduced their price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $105.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $150.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 10,000 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.32, for a total transaction of $603,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 65,045 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,923,514.40. The trade was a 13.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 5,681 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $397,670.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 9,756 shares in the company, valued at $682,920. This represents a 36.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,862 shares of company stock valued at $1,379,205. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $584,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 468,159 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $19,794,000 after purchasing an additional 241,262 shares during the last quarter. Creek Drive Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,843,000. KVP Capital Advisors LP purchased a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,137,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 7,196 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299 shares during the last quarter. 75.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics NASDAQ: NKTR is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel drug candidates through its proprietary chemistry and immunology platforms. The company focuses on polymer conjugate technology, which enables the creation of longer-acting versions of existing drugs, and on T-cell modulatory therapies aimed at harnessing the body's immune system to treat cancer and other serious diseases.

Nektar's product portfolio and pipeline include a range of clinical-stage and partnered programs.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source