Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA – Get Rating) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,340,000 shares, a decrease of 18.5% from the July 31st total of 11,460,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 9,320,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.0 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Akebia Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AKBA. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA grew its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 123.7% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA now owns 90,540 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 50,066 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the first quarter valued at $39,000. Mirabella Financial Services LLP purchased a new position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the first quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Akebia Therapeutics by 176.6% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 85,186 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 54,389 shares during the last quarter. 55.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AKBA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Akebia Therapeutics in a report on Saturday. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. HC Wainwright lowered their target price on Akebia Therapeutics from $2.00 to $1.25 in a research note on Monday, May 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1.75.

Akebia Therapeutics Stock Performance

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by $0.54. Akebia Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 197.12% and a negative net margin of 55.04%. The firm had revenue of $126.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.10 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.51) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Akebia Therapeutics will post -0.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

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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 vadadustat, an oral therapy, which is in Phase III development for the treatment of anemia due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) in dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis dependent adult patients.

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