Walleye Capital LLC Acquires New Holdings in Nektar Therapeutics $NKTR

Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 12,878 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $927,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NKTR. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 336.9% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,640,851 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,463,000 after buying an additional 2,807,595 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at $68,000. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 23.3% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 221,761 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 41,948 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $367,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $65,000. 75.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. BTIG Research boosted their price target on Nektar Therapeutics from $151.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wedbush decreased their price objective on Nektar Therapeutics from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Nektar Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $153.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.00.

Nektar Therapeutics Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NKTR stock opened at $70.72 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $65.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.44. Nektar Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $21.02 and a 1 year high of $109.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.40 and a beta of 1.13.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.82) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.58) by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $10.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.69 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 85.40% and a negative net margin of 284.18%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Nektar Therapeutics will post -9.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 5,681 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $397,670.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $682,920. This represents a 36.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.32, for a total value of $603,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,923,514.40. This trade represents a 13.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 21,862 shares of company stock worth $1,379,205 in the last quarter. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Nektar Therapeutics Profile

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.