Eversept Partners LP Takes Position in Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. $PTGX

Key Points

• Eversept Partners LP opened a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics, buying 52,961 shares worth about $4.63 million in the fourth quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds now own 98.63% of the stock.
• Protagonist Therapeutics reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, posting $0.05 EPS versus estimates for a $0.50 loss and revenue of $56.37 million, well above forecasts. Analysts remain constructive overall, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $115.21.
• There has also been notable insider selling, including CEO Dinesh V. Patel and Director William D. Waddill. Insiders sold a total of 272,345 shares worth about $27.68 million over the last three months.

Eversept Partners LP bought a new stake in Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 52,961 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,626,000. Eversept Partners LP owned about 0.08% of Protagonist Therapeutics as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PTGX. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 110.6% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 297 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Greenline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 138.9% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 540 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 79.5% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,185 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 222.4% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 951 shares of the company's stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. 98.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Protagonist Therapeutics Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of PTGX opened at $111.44 on Thursday. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $49.38 and a 12-month high of $113.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $102.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -61.57 and a beta of 1.85.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $56.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.70 million. Equities research analysts predict that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PTGX. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $110.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $121.00 price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Protagonist Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $115.21.

Insider Transactions at Protagonist Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 75,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.12, for a total value of $7,509,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 523,478 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,410,617.36. This represents a 12.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director William D. Waddill sold 9,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.68, for a total transaction of $969,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,825 shares of the company's stock, valued at $842,596. This represents a 53.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 272,345 shares of company stock valued at $27,676,386 in the last three months. 5.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Protagonist Therapeutics Company 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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