Analysts Set Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) PT at $3.50

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the five ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $3.50.

Several analysts recently weighed in on NKTR shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $0.50 to $1.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, January 26th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Performance

Nektar Therapeutics stock opened at $1.32 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $1.03 and its 200-day moving average is $0.70. Nektar Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $0.41 and a 1 year high of $1.75. The company has a market cap of $242.38 million, a P/E ratio of -0.90 and a beta of 0.90.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.21) by ($0.01). Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 96.80% and a negative net margin of 306.31%. The business had revenue of $23.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.09 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.32) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 30.6% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 101,687 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 23,829 shares during the period. Marquette Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 186,163 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 37,785 shares during the period. CM Management LLC increased its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. CM Management LLC now owns 800,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 1,993.9% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 77,978 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 74,254 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.88% of the company’s stock.

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.