Nektar Therapeutics’ (NKTR) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at B. Riley Financial

B. Riley Financial restated their buy rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $150.00 target price on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, up from their previous target price of $105.00.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on NKTR. Wall Street Zen cut Nektar Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, November 16th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, January 26th. BTIG Research raised their price target on Nektar Therapeutics from $118.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Nektar Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.29.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of NKTR stock opened at $70.37 on Monday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $6.45 and a 12 month high of $75.67. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $49.56. The firm has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of -8.83 and a beta of 1.34.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 423 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.00, for a total value of $30,879.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 75,489 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,510,697. This represents a 0.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 3,867 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.67, for a total value of $137,935.89. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 21,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $761,697.18. This represents a 15.33% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 4,470 shares of company stock worth $181,955 over the last three months. 5.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nektar Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust acquired a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $13,269,000. Simplify Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 67.6% in the 3rd quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. now owns 87,174 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,960,000 after purchasing an additional 35,176 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Nektar Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $18,393,000. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC grew its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 62.3% in the 3rd quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 73,716 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,194,000 after buying an additional 28,304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonepine Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth $1,297,000. Institutional investors own 75.88% of the company’s stock.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel drug candidates through its proprietary chemistry and immunology platforms. The company focuses on polymer conjugate technology, which enables the creation of longer-acting versions of existing drugs, and on T-cell modulatory therapies aimed at harnessing the body’s immune system to treat cancer and other serious diseases.

Nektar’s product portfolio and pipeline include a range of clinical-stage and partnered programs.