Madrigal Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MDGL) Shares Gap Up - What's Next?

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDGL - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $311.14, but opened at $327.15. Madrigal Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $342.89, with a volume of 466,635 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MDGL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from $394.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from $441.00 to $458.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and set a $460.00 target price (up previously from $422.00) on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $443.00 price target on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Madrigal Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $420.63.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 4.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.42 billion, a PE ratio of -18.51 and a beta of -1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 5.58, a current ratio of 5.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $291.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $312.46.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MDGL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($3.32) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($3.62) by $0.30. The business had revenue of $137.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $112.79 million. Madrigal Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 50.54% and a negative net margin of 123.38%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($7.38) EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -23.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Madrigal Pharmaceuticals news, Director Rebecca Taub sold 2,657 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.41, for a total value of $931,039.37. Following the sale, the director directly owned 461,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,554,428.04. This trade represents a 0.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul A. Friedman sold 2,700 shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.48, for a total transaction of $946,296.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 187,164 shares in the company, valued at $65,597,238.72. The trade was a 1.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 57,977 shares of company stock valued at $20,476,927. 21.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swiss National Bank grew its position in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 25,600 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $7,899,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new stake in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $519,000. Xponance Inc. grew its stake in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 1,268 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $391,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 3,859 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 652 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 136,849 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $42,228,000 after buying an additional 25,486 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.50% of the company's stock.

About Madrigal Pharmaceuticals

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.