Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Stock Rating Upgraded by UBS Group

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) was upgraded by research analysts at UBS Group to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wedbush lowered their target price on Nektar Therapeutics from $80.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $178.00 price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Friday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, August 21st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, October 9th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $130.67.

Nektar Therapeutics Trading Down 4.8%

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock opened at $37.92 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $65.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.41. Nektar Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $33.40 and a 1-year high of $109.00. The company has a market cap of $1.29 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.66 and a beta of 1.26.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.97) by $0.74. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 37.87% and a negative net margin of 287.84%. The company had revenue of $10.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Nektar Therapeutics will post -8.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Nektar Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Howard Robin sold 418 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.98, for a total value of $30,087.64. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NKTR. Two Seas Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 8.2% in the third quarter. Two Seas Capital LP now owns 3,345,978 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $202,582,000 after purchasing an additional 253,744 shares in the last quarter. BVF Inc. IL grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. BVF Inc. IL now owns 1,559,595 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $65,940,000 after acquiring an additional 283,000 shares in the last quarter. Braidwell LP grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 112.7% in the 2nd quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 473,617 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $33,063,000 after acquiring an additional 250,916 shares in the last quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 394,604 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $28,392,000 after acquiring an additional 10,262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 122.4% in the fourth quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 596,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,199,000 after purchasing an additional 328,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.88% of the company’s stock.

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.