Affinity Asset Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. $AKBA

Affinity Asset Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA) by 30.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,950,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 450,000 shares during the period. Akebia Therapeutics makes up about 1.0% of Affinity Asset Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Akebia Therapeutics were worth $7,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 51.9% during the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 19,311 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 6,595 shares in the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC bought a new stake in Akebia Therapeutics in the second quarter worth $39,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Akebia Therapeutics by 23.0% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,393 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Akebia Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at $59,000. Finally, Savant Capital LLC bought a new position in Akebia Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at $69,000. Institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AKBA shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Akebia Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price objective on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $5.00 target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Akebia Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $6.00.

Akebia Therapeutics Trading Down 3.1%

NASDAQ AKBA opened at $1.54 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $408.67 million, a PE ratio of -22.00 and a beta of 0.31. Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $1.45 and a 12 month high of $4.08. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $2.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $2.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapeutics for patients with kidney diseases. The company’s lead product investigational product candidate is Vafseo (vadadustat), an oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase, which is in Phase III development for the treatment of anemia due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) in dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis dependent patients.