Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Stock Price Up 12.1% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) traded up 12.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $9.24 and last traded at $9.86. 157,466 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 4% from the average session volume of 150,723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.79.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NKTR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Oppenheimer upgraded Nektar Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $6.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.50 target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Nektar Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $1.00 to $2.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4.50.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $0.82 and a 200-day moving average of $0.88. The company has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of -12.77 and a beta of 0.55.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $10.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.61 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 180.70% and a negative return on equity of 173.28%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.18) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Two Sigma Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 56.3% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC now owns 27,654 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 9,958 shares during the period. Harvest Investment Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. US Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Algert Global LLC bought a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 257.8% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 50,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 36,085 shares during the period. 75.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Nektar Therapeutics

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.