Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $88.33.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $90.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. William Blair reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Monday, May 12th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $60.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, HC Wainwright raised their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NKTR traded down $0.09 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $25.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,207,020 shares, compared to its average volume of 501,223. The company has a 50-day moving average of $13.94 and a 200-day moving average of $12.83. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $6.48 and a 12 month high of $37.38. The firm has a market cap of $310.30 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.61 and a beta of 0.94.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($3.30) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($2.70) by ($0.60). Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 329.54% and a negative net margin of 152.49%. The firm had revenue of $10.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.61 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($2.70) EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nantahala Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 90.0% during the fourth quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC now owns 7,810,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $7,263,000 after buying an additional 3,700,000 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 1.4% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 7,301,734 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,961,000 after purchasing an additional 100,645 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 187.3% in the 4th quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 4,974,512 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $4,626,000 after acquiring an additional 3,242,841 shares in the last quarter. Almitas Capital LLC grew its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 401.1% in the first quarter. Almitas Capital LLC now owns 4,610,872 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,135,000 after purchasing an additional 3,690,647 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 17.5% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,910,786 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,637,000 after buying an additional 583,153 shares during the period. 75.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nektar Therapeutics Company Profile

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.