Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. $PTGX Shares Sold by Moody Aldrich Partners LLC

Key Points

• Moody Aldrich Partners cut its stake in Protagonist by 43.6% to 80,623 shares, and institutional investors now own about 98.63% of the stock.
• Company insiders have been selling: CEO Dinesh Patel sold 54,641 shares (at $101) and CFO Asif Ali sold 24,765 shares (at $104.24), with insiders disposing of 158,215 shares worth $15.54M in the last 90 days.
• Despite a recent quarterly EPS and revenue miss, analysts remain largely positive (13 Buys, consensus "Moderate Buy") with an average price target of $108.15, while the stock trades around $101.)

Moody Aldrich Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Free Report) by 43.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 80,623 shares of the company's stock after selling 62,437 shares during the period. Protagonist Therapeutics comprises 1.3% of Moody Aldrich Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC owned 0.13% of Protagonist Therapeutics worth $7,042,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Activity at Protagonist Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 54,641 shares of Protagonist Therapeutics 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 524,938 shares in the company, valued at $53,018,738. The trade was a 9.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Asif Ali sold 24,765 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.24, for a total transaction of $2,581,503.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 60,753 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,332,892.72. The trade was a 28.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 158,215 shares of company stock worth $15,539,786 in the last ninety days. 4.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Johnson Rice reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $65.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Leerink Partners boosted their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $107.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Citizens Jmp increased their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $108.15.

Protagonist Therapeutics Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:PTGX opened at $101.21 on Wednesday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $97.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.46 billion, a P/E ratio of -49.37 and a beta of 2.12. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $41.28 and a 52 week high of $107.84.

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

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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