Insider Selling: Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) COO Sells $56,962.24 in Stock

Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) COO Jonathan Young sold 2,516 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.64, for a total value of $56,962.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 250,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,677,885.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Jonathan Young also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, June 3rd, Jonathan Young sold 5,000 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.29, for a total value of $96,450.00.
• On Wednesday, May 1st, Jonathan Young sold 5,000 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.15, for a total transaction of $100,750.00.
• On Monday, April 1st, Jonathan Young sold 5,000 shares of Akero Therapeutics stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.38, for a total transaction of $121,900.00.

Akero Therapeutics Stock Down 2.6 %

AKRO stock opened at $23.98 on Friday. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $11.25 and a 52 week high of $56.66. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.35. The company has a quick ratio of 30.12, a current ratio of 30.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a PE ratio of -7.49 and a beta of -0.31.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 10th. The company reported ($0.90) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.90). Sell-side analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on AKRO shares. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $59.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.13.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AKRO. RTW Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at $83,891,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 247.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,881,989 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,294,000 after buying an additional 2,053,028 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 42.2% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 6,121,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $154,589,000 after buying an additional 1,815,569 shares during the last quarter. Redmile Group LLC boosted its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 67.5% in the first quarter. Redmile Group LLC now owns 1,858,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,951,000 after buying an additional 749,226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Akero Therapeutics by 19.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,669,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,702,000 after acquiring an additional 584,875 shares during the last quarter.

About Akero Therapeutics

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.