Stock Alert: Akebia Therapeutics Up 25% As Drug Trial Achieves Positive Results

(RTTNews) - Shares of Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (AKBA) are gaining over 25% on Tuesday morning after the drug maker reported positive topline results from a late stage study on patients with chronic kidney disease. AKBA is currently trading at $10.85, up $2.19 or 25.28%, on the Nasdaq. The experimental drug, vadadustat, is aimed at treating anemia caused by the kidney disease and was tested in the trial in comparison with Amgen's AMGN, +0.03% Aranesp, a longtime blockbuster drug that brought in $1.7 billion in 2019. This is the first of two late-stage clinical studies for vadadustat. In this trial, the investigational drug met the primary and secondary efficacy endpoints and the first safety endpoint, Akebia said. Akebia said its Phase 3 study of vadadustat, its investigational treatment of anemia due to chronic kidney disease in adult patients on dialysis, achieved primary efficacy and cardiovascular safety endpoints.