Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Stock Price Passes Below 200-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• Akebia Therapeutics shares fell below their 200-day moving average, trading as low as $0.90 before closing around $0.96 on heavy volume. The 200-day average was $1.22.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with three Buy ratings, two Holds and one Sell; the consensus rating is Hold, with a $3.75 price target.
• The company’s latest quarterly results modestly beat expectations, reporting a loss of $0.02 per share versus the projected $0.04 loss and revenue of $49.13 million. However, Akebia continues to post negative profitability metrics, including a 13.54% net margin and an 88.88% negative return on equity.

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $1.22 and traded as low as $0.90. Akebia Therapeutics shares last traded at $0.9584, with a volume of 11,341,036 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AKBA shares. Weiss Ratings raised Akebia Therapeutics from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Leerink Partners downgraded Akebia Therapeutics from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $1.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, August 7th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen cut Akebia Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Akebia Therapeutics from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $3.75.

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Up 6.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.43. The firm's 50-day moving average is $1.15 and its 200 day moving average is $1.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.58 million, a PE ratio of -8.71 and a beta of 0.26.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $49.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.85 million. Akebia Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 13.54% and a negative return on equity of 88.88%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Akebia Therapeutics

In other news, CFO Erik Ostrowski sold 56,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.11, for a total transaction of $62,181.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 616,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at $684,443.76. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Akebia Therapeutics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $26,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 697.8% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 20,622 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 18,037 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company's stock.

About Akebia Therapeutics

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for patients with kidney disease. The company's lead product candidate, vadadustat, is an investigational oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor designed to treat anemia associated with chronic kidney disease in both dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis patients. Akebia's research and development efforts also extend to preclinical programs targeting nephrology and related metabolic disorders.

Since its founding in 2007, Akebia has pursued strategic collaborations to advance its clinical pipeline and expand its market reach.

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