Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.02 EPS

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.02), FiscalAI reports. Akebia Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 8.83% and a negative return on equity of 59.49%. The business had revenue of $53.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $51.67 million.

Here are the key takeaways from Akebia Therapeutics’ conference call:

• Vafseo delivered strong commercial traction with Q1 net product revenue of $15.8 million (the highest quarter to date), prescribers up ~28% and patients on therapy rising ~60% QoQ to nearly 7,500, driven by dialysis organizations adopting observed (three‑times‑weekly) dosing and ~86% first‑refill adherence.
• Clinical evidence supporting Vafseo expanded — a post‑hoc INNO2VATE analysis published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology showed lower risk of death or hospitalization versus ESA and an economic analysis showed fewer hospitalizations and ~15% lower annual hospitalization costs; top‑line VOCAL data are expected by year‑end 2026 and VOICE in early 2027.
• R&D momentum continued — praliciguat is enrolling a Phase II FSGS study (24‑week UPCR primary endpoint), AKB‑097 (Ebri) will start a Phase II open‑label basket trial in H2 2026 across IgA nephropathy, lupus nephritis and C3 glomerulopathy with initial data expected in 2027, and AKB‑9090 Phase I has been initiated with top‑line results expected in early 2027.
• Financial headwinds — total revenues declined to $53.5 million (driven by lower Auryxia sales) and higher COGS, R&D and SG&A turned the prior‑year profit into a $9.1 million net loss in Q1, although management reports cash of $162.6 million and expects sufficient runway for at least two years.

Akebia Therapeutics Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of AKBA stock opened at $1.16 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $311.17 million, a P/E ratio of -14.50 and a beta of 0.35. Akebia Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $1.13 and a fifty-two week high of $4.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Akebia Therapeutics news, CEO John P. Butler purchased 69,270 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1.25 per share, with a total value of $86,587.50. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 3,367,064 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,208,830. The trade was a 2.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Akebia Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in Akebia Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Caption Management LLC acquired a new position in Akebia Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 23.0% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,393 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC increased its holdings in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 49.5% in the third quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 18,232 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 6,034 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at $62,000. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.00 target price on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Akebia Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Zacks Research cut shares of Akebia Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Akebia Therapeutics from $6.00 to $4.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.67.

Akebia Therapeutics Company Profile

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for patients with kidney disease. The company’s lead product candidate, vadadustat, is an investigational oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor designed to treat anemia associated with chronic kidney disease in both dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis patients. Akebia’s research and development efforts also extend to preclinical programs targeting nephrology and related metabolic disorders.

Since its founding in 2007, Akebia has pursued strategic collaborations to advance its clinical pipeline and expand its market reach.