Prothena (NASDAQ:PRTA) Shares Break Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• Prothena shares fell below their 200-day moving average of $9.37, trading as low as $8.07 before last changing hands at $8.72. The company has a market capitalization of approximately $456.5 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $24.57, despite recent downgrades from Weiss Ratings and Wall Street Zen.
• Prothena exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting a loss of $0.32 per share versus the anticipated $0.39 loss and revenue of $1.01 million versus estimates of $0.42 million. Insiders have also bought 177,000 shares worth approximately $1.54 million over the past 90 days.

Shares of Prothena Corporation plc (NASDAQ:PRTA - Get Free Report) passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $9.37 and traded as low as $8.07. Prothena shares last traded at $8.72, with a volume of 488,857 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PRTA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Prothena from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (e+)" rating in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Prothena in a report on Friday, July 24th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Prothena in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Prothena from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.57.

Prothena Trading Up 5.2%

The business's fifty day moving average is $8.91 and its 200 day moving average is $9.37. The company has a market cap of $456.49 million, a P/E ratio of -10.38, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of -0.33.

Prothena (NASDAQ:PRTA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.39) by $0.07. Prothena had a negative return on equity of 16.45% and a negative net margin of 80.68%.The business had revenue of $1.01 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $0.42 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Prothena Corporation plc will post 0.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder William P. Scully purchased 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The stock was bought at an average price of $8.43 per share, for a total transaction of $843,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 927,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,814,610. The trade was a 12.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Michael Isaacs sold 8,386 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.47, for a total value of $71,029.42. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 35,745 shares of the company's stock, valued at $302,760.15. The trade was a 19.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have bought 177,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,538,190 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 10.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prothena

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Prothena in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $100,000. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA bought a new position in Prothena in the 1st quarter worth approximately $146,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Prothena in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $148,000. Sei Investments Co. purchased a new position in Prothena in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $168,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Prothena by 55.1% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 28,128 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 9,991 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.08% of the company's stock.

Prothena Company Profile

Prothena Corporation plc NASDAQ: PRTA is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing novel therapies for neurodegenerative and other protein-misfolding diseases. The company's research is based on targeting abnormal proteins and the biological processes associated with their accumulation in tissue.

Prothena's lead programs include birtamimab, an investigational antibody being developed for patients with AL amyloidosis, and prasinezumab, an investigational antibody targeting alpha-synuclein for Parkinson's disease.

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