Madrigal Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MDGL) Shares Gap Down Following Insider Selling

Key Points

• Madrigal Pharmaceuticals' stock experienced a significant decline, opening at $354.56 after closing at $369.84, primarily due to recent insider selling.
• Director Kenneth Bate sold 10,000 shares at $365.20, resulting in a 79.20% decrease in his ownership, while other directors also reduced their stakes significantly.
• Despite insider selling, several analysts have upgraded their ratings, with UBS setting a price target of $523.00 and Canaccord Genuity raising its target to $428.00.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDGL - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Monday following insider selling activity. The stock had previously closed at $369.84, but opened at $354.56. Madrigal Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $364.21, with a volume of 83,865 shares traded.

Specifically, Director Kenneth Bate sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.20, for a total value of $3,652,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,627 shares in the company, valued at $959,380.40. This trade represents a 79.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Paul A. Friedman sold 129,172 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.24, for a total value of $47,824,641.28. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 187,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at $69,295,599.36. This trade represents a 40.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In related news, Director Rebecca Taub sold 43,263 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.69, for a total transaction of $15,388,216.47. Following the sale, the director owned 461,044 shares in the company, valued at $163,988,740.36. This represents a 8.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MDGL shares. Wall Street Zen raised Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $523.00 price target (up from $458.00) on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from $420.00 to $428.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. B. Riley reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $460.00 price target (up previously from $422.00) on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $443.00 price target on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $439.71.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $8.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.83 and a beta of -1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $310.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $314.18. The company has a quick ratio of 4.78, a current ratio of 5.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MDGL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.90) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($3.48) by $1.58. Madrigal Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 38.38% and a negative net margin of 54.68%. The firm had revenue of $212.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $158.94 million. During the same period last year, the company posted ($7.10) EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1357.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -23.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Madrigal Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Paulson & CO. Inc. raised its stake in shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in the first quarter. Paulson & CO. Inc. now owns 2,099,523 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $695,425,000 after acquiring an additional 57,523 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its position in shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 96.3% in the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 376,163 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $113,842,000 after buying an additional 184,554 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its position in shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 317,433 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $105,143,000 after buying an additional 8,316 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 12.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 277,221 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $83,898,000 after acquiring an additional 31,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rock Springs Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Rock Springs Capital Management LP now owns 265,212 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $81,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,150 shares during the last quarter. 98.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of therapeutics for the treatment of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in the United States. Its lead product candidate is resmetirom, a liver-directed thyroid hormone receptor beta agonist, which is in Phase 3 clinical trials for treating NASH.

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