Nektar Therapeutics’ (NKTR) Buy Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

BTIG Research restated their buy rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $118.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Citigroup started coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen cut Nektar Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 16th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $110.86.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock opened at $37.33 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $759.29 million, a PE ratio of -4.68 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $46.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.08. Nektar Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $6.45 and a fifty-two week high of $66.92.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.85) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.85) by $1.00. The business had revenue of $11.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.20 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 192.87% and a negative return on equity of 456.53%. Analysts expect that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 2,207 shares of Nektar Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.28, for a total transaction of $119,795.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 54,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,944,418.60. This trade represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Mark Andrew Wilson sold 630 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.28, for a total transaction of $34,196.40. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 21,585 shares in the company, valued at $1,171,633.80. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 7,861 shares of company stock worth $354,730 in the last quarter. 5.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NKTR. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Nektar Therapeutics by 93.8% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 434 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $65,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at about $68,000. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the third quarter worth about $88,000. 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.