Bleakley Financial Group LLC Acquires Shares of 12,802 Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. $PTGX

Key Points

• Bleakley Financial Group initiated a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics, buying 12,802 shares in Q1 valued at about $1.35 million. The filing highlights continued institutional interest, with hedge funds and other investors owning 98.63% of the stock.
• Insiders have been selling shares recently, including directors Bryan Giraudo and William D. Waddill, and insiders sold 162,880 shares worth roughly $16.5 million over the last three months. Corporate insiders still hold about 5.19% of the company.
• The stock has been moving higher, trading up 6.7% to $140.91, near its 52-week high. Protagonist also beat Q1 expectations, posting $0.05 EPS versus an expected loss and revenue of $56.37 million versus forecasts of $11.70 million.

Bleakley Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 12,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,349,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 30.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 9,964 shares of the company's stock valued at $482,000 after purchasing an additional 2,334 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 0.9% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 37,403 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,810,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 283.6% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 134,269 shares of the company's stock worth $6,493,000 after purchasing an additional 99,269 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth $987,000. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 19,208 shares of the company's stock worth $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.63% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, Director Bryan Giraudo sold 36,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.14, for a total value of $3,605,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 27,825 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,786,395.50. The trade was a 56.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director William D. Waddill sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.94, for a total value of $1,061,460.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,825 shares in the company, valued at approximately $922,880.50. This represents a 53.49% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 162,880 shares of company stock worth $16,539,792. Corporate insiders own 5.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PTGX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $121.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Protagonist Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $123.00.

Protagonist Therapeutics Trading Up 6.7%

Protagonist Therapeutics stock opened at $140.91 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.06 billion, a PE ratio of -77.85 and a beta of 1.79. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $113.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.64. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $50.49 and a 52 week high of $141.10.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.50) by $0.55. Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 154.88% and a negative return on equity of 17.76%. The company had revenue of $56.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.70 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

Protagonist Therapeutics Profile

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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