Insider Selling: Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) CEO Sells 5,166 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• CEO Howard Robin of Nektar Therapeutics sold 5,166 shares at $33.70 each, reducing his ownership by 7.61% and leaving him with 62,674 shares valued at over $2.1 million.
• Nektar Therapeutics' stock surged 10.3% to $44.33, with a year-high at the same price and volume significantly exceeding its average.
• In its latest earnings report, Nektar Therapeutics beat analyst expectations by reporting ($2.95) EPS on revenue of $11.18 million, resulting in projections of a -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) CEO Howard W. Robin sold 5,166 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.70, for a total value of $174,094.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 62,674 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,112,113.80. This represents a 7.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Nektar Therapeutics Trading Up 3.1%

NASDAQ NKTR traded up $1.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $48.68. The company had a trading volume of 848,765 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,095,591. The company has a market capitalization of $925.89 million, a PE ratio of -5.53 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $28.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.51. Nektar Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $6.45 and a twelve month high of $50.53.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) last posted 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 analysts' expectations of $9.42 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on NKTR. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Nektar Therapeutics to $120.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. B. Riley boosted their price objective on Nektar Therapeutics from $60.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Nektar Therapeutics from $60.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nektar Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $130,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $222,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 522,409 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $486,000 after purchasing an additional 49,319 shares during the period. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 267.0% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 175,193 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 127,459 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.88% of the company's stock.

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.