Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 74,289 Shares of PTC Therapeutics, Inc. $PTCT

Key Points

• Renaissance Technologies cut its PTC Therapeutics stake by 12.2%, selling 74,289 shares during the first quarter and retaining 533,300 shares valued at approximately $36.3 million.
• PTC Therapeutics reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with revenue rising 43.5% year over year to $272.55 million and an adjusted loss of $0.03 per share versus the $0.45 consensus loss estimate.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: the stock carries a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $93.83, while PTCT recently traded near $75.39.

Renaissance Technologies LLC reduced its holdings in PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTCT - Free Report) by 12.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 533,300 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 74,289 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.64% of PTC Therapeutics worth $36,334,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of PTC Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth about $1,999,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of PTC Therapeutics by 11.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 178,755 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $9,109,000 after acquiring an additional 18,504 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its position in shares of PTC Therapeutics by 280.1% in the second quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 2,478 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,826 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in PTC Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,661,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in PTC Therapeutics by 247.4% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,143 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 814 shares in the last quarter.

PTC Therapeutics Trading Down 0.5%

PTCT stock opened at $75.39 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a PE ratio of -32.36, a PEG ratio of 6.60 and a beta of 0.53. PTC Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $43.17 and a 1-year high of $90.87. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $77.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.81.

PTC Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTCT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.45) by $0.42. PTC Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 362.45% and a negative net margin of 22.58%.The business had revenue of $272.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $217.42 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $10.04 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 43.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that PTC Therapeutics, Inc. will post 0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PTCT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen upgraded PTC Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of PTC Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup upgraded shares of PTC Therapeutics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $108.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of PTC Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $94.00 price target on shares of PTC Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.83.

Insider Transactions at PTC Therapeutics

In other news, insider Neil Gregory Almstead sold 24,613 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.89, for a total value of $2,187,849.57. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 60,299 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,359,978.11. This represents a 28.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Christine Marie Utter sold 19,686 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.56, for a total transaction of $1,487,474.16. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 70,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,304,236.44. This represents a 21.90% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 198,662 shares of company stock valued at $16,347,994. Corporate insiders own 5.50% of the company's stock.

PTC Therapeutics Company Profile

PTC Therapeutics, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule and biologic therapies for the treatment of rare genetic disorders. Since its founding in 1998, PTC has dedicated its efforts to addressing high unmet medical needs by targeting underlying genetic causes of disease. The company's research platform emphasizes mechanisms such as nonsense suppression and RNA modulation, enabling the development of novel treatments for conditions with limited therapeutic options.

Among PTC's approved products is Translarna (ataluren), a first-in-class therapy designed to treat nonsense mutation Duchenne muscular dystrophy in select markets.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.