Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Releases Quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $29.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.65 million. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 173.28% and a negative net margin of 180.70%.

Nektar Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ NKTR opened at $0.82 on Friday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $0.65 and a 12 month high of $1.93. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $0.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1.08. The company has a market capitalization of $150.41 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.97 and a beta of 0.65.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on NKTR shares. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. B. Riley assumed coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $4.00 target price for the company. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.50 price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $4.70.

Insider Transactions at Nektar Therapeutics

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 firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.01, for a total value of $47,464.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,195,710 shares in the company, valued at $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 90 days, insiders have sold 165,586 shares of company stock valued at $159,990. Insiders own 3.71% of the company’s stock.

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.