Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by ($0.02), FiscalAI reports. Akebia Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 7.07% and a negative return on equity of 137.67%. The business had revenue of $57.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.37 million.

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

• Vafseo adoption is accelerating — more than 1,000 prescribers at 24 dialysis organizations have written prescriptions and 290,000 patients have access under protocols, with improving first-refill adherence (~87% overall; ~91% in observed-dosing patients) and early Q1 momentum.
• Vafseo demand was softer in Q4 due to adherence challenges and a USRC distribution change that caused a one-time inventory drawdown (about a $4.8M impact), leaving Q4 net Vafseo revenue at $6.2M despite roughly $11M in demand.
• Clinical and economic data are building a case for Vafseo — INNO2VATE post-hoc analyses showed lower death/hospitalization versus ESAs and an ADC cost analysis reported ~7.7% fewer hospitalizations, ~16% fewer hospitalization days and ~$3,700 annual hospitalization savings per patient, with VOCAL (late 2026) and VOICE (early 2027) as key upcoming catalysts.
• Management is expanding into rare kidney disease as a new value driver, planning an AKB-097 phase 2 basket trial in H2 2026, a praliciguat FSGS Phase 2 (~60 patients) and an AKB-9090 Phase 1 in H1 2026, with an R&D day on April 2 to provide program details.
• Financial profile strengthened in 2025 — total revenues rose to $236.2M (Vafseo $45.8M), net loss narrowed to $5.3M, and cash was $184.8M with management stating runway of at least two years, though Auryxia revenue is expected to decline in 2026 due to broader generic competition.

Akebia Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of AKBA stock traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $1.32. 654,934 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,296,458. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $1.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.12. Akebia Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $1.14 and a fifty-two week high of $4.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The company has a market cap of $348.96 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.81 and a beta of 0.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Akebia Therapeutics

In other news, CAO Richard C. Malabre sold 49,524 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.39, for a total transaction of $68,838.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 299,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $416,152.10. This represents a 14.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AKBA. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 23.0% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,393 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Akebia Therapeutics by 26.0% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 23,279 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 4,798 shares during the period. Polymer Capital Management US LLC raised its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 49.5% during the 3rd quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 18,232 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 6,034 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 164,655 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $265,000 after purchasing an additional 8,103 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Akebia Therapeutics by 16.8% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 59,502 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $217,000 after purchasing an additional 8,568 shares during the last quarter. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AKBA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut Akebia Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. BTIG Research cut their target price on Akebia Therapeutics from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Akebia Therapeutics from $6.00 to $4.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price objective on shares of Akebia Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5.40.

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.