Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKBA)

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (AKBA) is a biopharmaceutical company that operates in the kidney disease industry. The company is dedicated to developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics that address unmet needs in the kidney disease community.

Akebia Therapeutics has established itself as a leader in the kidney community through its fully integrated business focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics. The company's purpose is to better the life of each person impacted by kidney disease. Akebia Therapeutics has a presence in the United States, Japan, and Taiwan, and competes with other biopharmaceutical companies that develop and commercialize treatments for kidney disease, such as Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. and Relypsa, Inc.

The company generates revenue through the sale of its primary products, including Auryxia and Vafseo. Auryxia is an orally administered medicine used to treat hyperphosphatemia in adult patients with dialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease and for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia in adult patients with non-dialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease. Auryxia is marketed in the United States, Japan, and Taiwan. Vafseo, on the other hand, is a HIF prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor approved in 36 countries as a treatment for anemia due to chronic kidney disease.

Akebia Therapeutics' primary customer base includes nephrologists, third-party payors, dialysis organizations, and patients. The company markets Auryxia in the United States through its well-established, nephrology-focused sales force and commercial organization. Akebia Therapeutics also has partnerships with other companies, such as Japan Tobacco, Inc. and its subsidiary, Torii Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., to commercialize ferric citrate hydrate in Japan, and with Medice Arzneimittel Pütter GmbH & Co. KG to develop and commercialize vadadustat in the European Union, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Australia.

The company's competitive advantage lies in its strong pipeline of molecules being evaluated to target areas of unmet need in acute care settings. The discovery of HIF laid the foundation to explore the central role of oxygen sensing in many diseases. Akebia Therapeutics has selected two additional HIF molecules for preclinical development: AKB-9090, for use in an acute care setting, potentially for acute kidney disease or acute respiratory distress syndrome, and AKB-10108 for retinopathy of prematurity in neonates.