Alliancebernstein L.P. Trims Stake in Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRO) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,839,281 shares of the company’s stock after selling 177,807 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 2.64% of Akero Therapeutics worth $51,169,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 21,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its stake in Akero Therapeutics by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 95,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,660,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in Akero Therapeutics by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 105,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,940,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 14,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,446 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Akero Therapeutics by 13.8% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 16,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $485,000 after purchasing an additional 2,049 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity

In other Akero Therapeutics news, Director G. Walmsley Graham purchased 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $43.55 per share, with a total value of $2,177,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,200,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,260,000. This represents a 4.35 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Cheng sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.90, for a total transaction of $1,647,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 716,062 shares in the company, valued at $39,311,803.80. This trade represents a 4.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 341,309 shares of company stock valued at $15,863,578 and have sold 242,135 shares valued at $12,064,779. 7.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AKRO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Akero Therapeutics from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Akero Therapeutics in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Akero Therapeutics from $42.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Akero Therapeutics from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on Akero Therapeutics from $56.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.29.

Akero Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of AKRO opened at $36.73 on Friday. Akero Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $17.86 and a one year high of $58.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $47.41 and its 200-day moving average is $35.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 17.25 and a current ratio of 17.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.79 and a beta of -0.18.

Akero Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKRO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.99) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.98) by ($0.01). Equities analysts anticipate that Akero Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.99 EPS for the current year.

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.