Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.33 EPS

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by $0.33, Zacks reports. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 173.28% and a negative net margin of 180.70%.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

NKTR traded up $0.00 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $0.82. 1,670,182 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,852,163. The stock has a market cap of $151.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.98 and a beta of 0.65. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $0.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.09. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $0.65 and a 12 month high of $1.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 51,115 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $0.94, for a total value of $48,048.10. Following the sale, the insider now owns 326,904 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $307,289.76. This trade represents a 13.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 46,995 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.01, for a total value of $47,464.95. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,195,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,207,667.10. The trade was a 3.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 165,586 shares of company stock valued at $159,990. Company insiders own 3.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NKTR. B. Riley began coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $4.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $6.50 price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $4.70.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing medicines in the field of immunotherapy in the United States and internationally. The company is developing rezpegaldesleukin, a cytokine Treg stimulant that is in phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and ulcerative colitis, as well as phase 2b clinical trial to treat atopic dermatitis and psoriasis; and NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist, which is in phase 1 clinical trial to boost the immune system's natural ability to fight cancer.