Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Stock Price Down 5.7% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) traded down 5.7% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $44.76 and last traded at $44.32. 1,013,856 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 6% from the average daily volume of 1,077,279 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.99.

Nektar Therapeutics News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Nektar Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Long-term Phase 2b results showed that rezpegaldesleukin’s benefits may persist after treatment ends. In alopecia areata, 75% of responding patients maintained a SALT score of 20 or below four months off treatment, while 63% maintained that response at six months. Hair regrowth also continued after treatment, with 19% reaching a SALT score of 10 or below. New Rezpegaldesleukin Data Supporting Long-term Durability and Disease Improvement
• Positive Sentiment: Nektar is advancing the program toward pivotal testing: a third Phase 3 ZENITH trial in treatment-experienced atopic dermatitis has begun, and the Phase 3 ZENITH alopecia areata study is expected to start in early 2027. Nektar Reports Durable Rezpegaldesleukin Data
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reaffirmed its “buy” rating and assigned a $185 price target, implying substantial upside from recent trading levels. This is an analyst forecast, not a guarantee of performance.
• Neutral Sentiment: New biomarker findings indicated early effects across multiple immune pathways in atopic dermatitis, potentially supporting rezpegaldesleukin’s differentiated Treg-based mechanism. New Biomarker Data Presented at EADV Congress 2026
• Negative Sentiment: The positive dermatology update did not immediately translate into a stronger stock reaction. Investors may be demanding clearer pivotal-trial evidence and a nearer-term commercial path, since the reported results are still Phase 2b data and Phase 3 readouts remain outstanding. Nektar Drops After New Mid-Stage Data

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NKTR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $178.00 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, August 28th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Friday. Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $153.00 price target for the company. Finally, TD Cowen raised Nektar Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Nektar Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.50.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Down 5.7%

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $70.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.25. The firm has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.64 and a beta of 1.26.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.23) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.97) by $0.74. The business had revenue of $10.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 37.87% and a negative net margin of 287.84%. On average, research analysts predict that Nektar Therapeutics will post -8.16 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nektar Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Howard Robin sold 418 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.98, for a total transaction of $30,087.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 54,627 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,932,051.46. This trade represents a 0.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 53.2% during the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 25,900 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,808,000 after buying an additional 8,990 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 55.9% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 19,183 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,339,000 after buying an additional 6,881 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 27.3% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,477 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $592,000 after acquiring an additional 1,816 shares during the period. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $5,942,000. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $650,000. 75.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing medicines that use the body’s immune system to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company’s research programs are based on proprietary drug-design and immunology technologies intended to improve the activity, targeting, or dosing of therapeutic agents.

Nektar’s pipeline has included NKTR-255, an investigational interleukin-15 receptor agonist designed to activate natural killer cells and support antitumor immune responses.