Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) Shares Sold by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 57.6%, selling 857,602 shares during the first quarter, leaving it with a total of 631,893 shares worth approximately $30.56 million.
• Institutions currently own 98.63% of Protagonist Therapeutics' stock, with significant increases in holdings from US Bancorp DE and XTX Topco Ltd in the same quarter.
• Protagonist Therapeutics' stock is currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with a consensus target price of $66.10, following positive earnings that exceeded estimates.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. cut its position in Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Free Report) by 57.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 631,893 shares of the company's stock after selling 857,602 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned 1.02% of Protagonist Therapeutics worth $30,558,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 71.5% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,654 shares of the company's stock valued at $177,000 after purchasing an additional 1,524 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd increased its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 111.4% during the 1st quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 14,257 shares of the company's stock worth $689,000 after purchasing an additional 7,513 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Protagonist Therapeutics during the first quarter worth $579,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 6.3% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 22,698 shares of the company's stock worth $1,098,000 after purchasing an additional 1,349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP purchased a new stake in Protagonist Therapeutics during the first quarter worth $593,000. 98.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of PTGX traded down $1.37 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $52.46. The stock had a trading volume of 81,747 shares, compared to its average volume of 954,912. The firm has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 69.95 and a beta of 2.33. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $53.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.89. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.50 and a 12-month high of $60.60.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.19) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.50) by $0.31. Protagonist Therapeutics had a return on equity of 9.22% and a net margin of 27.04%. The business had revenue of $28.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.44 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PTGX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Protagonist Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.10.

Insider Activity

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, insider Arturo Md Molina sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $570,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 83,892 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,784,360.76. This trade represents a 10.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 22,065 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.05, for a total value of $1,214,678.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 548,538 shares in the company, valued at $30,197,016.90. This trade represents a 3.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 72,859 shares of company stock worth $4,020,877 over the last three months. 4.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Protagonist Therapeutics Company Profile

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops peptide-based drugs for hematology and blood disorders, and inflammatory and immunomodulatory diseases. It is developing Rusfertide (PTG-300), an injectable hepcidin mimetic that completed phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of polycythemia vera and other blood disorders; and JNJ-2113, an orally delivered investigational drug to block biological pathways that completed phase 2b clinical trials for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis; and PN-943, an orally delivered, gut-restricted alpha 4 beta 7 specific integrin antagonist completed a phase 2 clinical trials in patients with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis.