Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Coverage Initiated at Westpark Capital

Equities researchers at Westpark Capital assumed coverage on shares of Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $4.50 price target on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Westpark Capital’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 361.07% from the company’s previous close.

AKBA has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Akebia Therapeutics from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Zacks Research raised Akebia Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Leerink Partners cut Akebia Therapeutics from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $1.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Four 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $3.90.

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of AKBA traded up $0.00 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $0.98. 666,756 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,496,942. The business has a 50 day moving average of $1.13 and a 200 day moving average of $1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $270.46 million, a PE ratio of -8.87 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Akebia Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $0.81 and a 1-year high of $3.20.

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.02. Akebia Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 13.54% and a negative return on equity of 88.88%. The company had revenue of $49.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.85 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Akebia Therapeutics will post -0.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Akebia Therapeutics news, CFO Erik Ostrowski sold 56,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.11, for a total value of $62,181.09. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 616,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $684,443.76. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Akebia Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Akebia Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 697.8% during the 4th 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 period. 33.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.