Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Price Target Raised to $118.00

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) had its price target increased by analysts at BTIG Research from $100.00 to $118.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. BTIG Research’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 140.03% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on NKTR. B. Riley boosted their price objective on Nektar Therapeutics from $85.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, November 16th. Finally, HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nektar Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.83.

Nektar Therapeutics Trading Down 7.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:NKTR opened at $49.16 on Tuesday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $6.45 and a 12 month high of $66.92. The company has a market capitalization of $999.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.17 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $58.18 and its 200 day moving average is $39.92.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.85) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.85) by $1.00. The business had revenue of $11.79 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.20 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 192.87% and a negative return on equity of 456.53%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Nektar Therapeutics

In related news, insider Mark Andrew Wilson sold 630 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.28, for a total value of $34,196.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 21,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,171,633.80. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 1,157 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.28, for a total transaction of $62,801.96. Following the transaction, the insider owned 18,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,029,745.88. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 3,994 shares of company stock worth $216,794 over the last three months. 3.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Almitas Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 401.1% during the 1st 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 during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 336.9% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,640,851 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,463,000 after buying an additional 2,807,595 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,008,000. Ieq Capital LLC grew its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 2,435.4% in the first quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 557,222 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 535,244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC acquired a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at about $344,000. 75.88% of the stock is currently owned by 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.