331,164 Shares in Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. $PTGX Bought by Jennison Associates LLC

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC established a new position of 331,164 shares in Protagonist (~$28.9M), representing about 0.53% of the company at quarter-end as institutional ownership sits at 98.63% with Vanguard and UBS notably increasing stakes.
• Protagonist missed the quarter—EPS of -$0.69 vs. -$0.53 expected and revenue $7.44M vs. $14.92M est.—leaving very negative margins; the stock trades around $98 with a $6.33B market cap and a 52‑week range of $41.28–$107.84.
• Insider selling has been significant (CEO and CFO recent sales; 158,215 shares worth $15.54M sold in the last 90 days), but analysts remain mostly positive (13 Buys, consensus price target $108.15 — "Moderate Buy").

Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 331,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,924,000. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.53% of Protagonist Therapeutics at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at $328,000. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 46.1% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,770,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $241,934,000 after acquiring an additional 874,013 shares in the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 53.4% in the fourth quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 26,528 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,317,000 after acquiring an additional 9,232 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,413,690 shares of the company's stock valued at $472,832,000 after acquiring an additional 1,156,461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 114,036 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,960,000 after acquiring an additional 23,719 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.63% of the company's stock.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:PTGX opened at $98.37 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -47.99 and a beta of 1.89. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $41.28 and a 52 week high of $107.84. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $98.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.76.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($0.69) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.53) by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $7.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.92 million. Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 282.83% and a negative return on equity of 19.89%. Analysts expect that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 1.02 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, CFO Asif Ali sold 24,765 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.24, for a total value of $2,581,503.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 60,753 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,332,892.72. This trade represents a 28.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 54,641 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total transaction of $5,518,741.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 524,938 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,018,738. This trade represents a 9.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 158,215 shares of company stock valued at $15,539,786 in the last 90 days. 4.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PTGX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $121.00 price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $80.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $65.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $108.15.

About Protagonist Therapeutics

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: PTGX is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel, orally administered peptide-based therapies for immune-mediated and other serious diseases. The company leverages its proprietary Peptide 2.0 platform to design peptides that target G protein–coupled receptors and cytokine receptors, with the goal of combining the potency of biologics with the convenience of oral administration. Protagonist's approach aims to address unmet medical needs in areas where injectable therapies have been the standard of care.

Among its lead programs is PTG-100, an oral α4β7 integrin antagonist intended to block leukocyte migration to the gut in ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease.

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