Sagimet Biosciences (NASDAQ:SGMT) Shares Gap Down - What's Next?

Key Points

• Sagimet Biosciences shares fell sharply, opening at $9.78 after previously closing at $10.42 and later trading near $9.10. The company has a market capitalization of approximately $555 million and a high beta of 3.45.
• Analyst views are mixed but lean positive: nine analysts rate the stock a Buy, one rates it Hold, and two rate it Sell. The consensus rating is Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $25.34, though Goldman Sachs initiated coverage with a Sell rating and a $7 target.
• Sagimet missed its latest quarterly earnings estimate, reporting a loss of $0.26 per share versus expectations of $0.25. The clinical-stage biotechnology company is developing denifanstat, an oral FASN inhibitor focused primarily on treating MASH, a chronic liver disease.

Sagimet Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:SGMT - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $10.42, but opened at $9.78. Sagimet Biosciences shares last traded at $9.0960, with a volume of 269,339 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Sagimet Biosciences in a report on Thursday. They issued a "sell" rating and a $7.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Sagimet Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Sagimet Biosciences from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Sagimet Biosciences in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $10.71 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Sagimet Biosciences in a report on Friday, August 14th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $25.34.

Sagimet Biosciences Price Performance

The stock's fifty day moving average price is $9.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.58. The firm has a market cap of $555.45 million, a PE ratio of -6.96 and a beta of 3.45.

Sagimet Biosciences (NASDAQ:SGMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.25) by ($0.01). On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sagimet Biosciences Inc. will post -1.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Sagimet Biosciences

In other news, insider Elizabeth Rozek sold 10,545 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.76, for a total value of $81,829.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 224,414 shares in the company, valued at $1,741,452.64. This represents a 4.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO David Happel sold 64,051 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.76, for a total value of $497,035.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 741,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,754,583.20. This represents a 7.95% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 113,646 shares of company stock worth $920,491 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 11.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Sagimet Biosciences

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SGMT. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sagimet Biosciences by 19.8% during the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,677 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 2,591 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Sagimet Biosciences by 344.1% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 43,858 shares of the company's stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 33,982 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Sagimet Biosciences during the second quarter worth about $315,000. Dumac Inc. acquired a new position in Sagimet Biosciences in the 4th quarter valued at about $421,000. Finally, AWM Investment Company Inc. acquired a new position in Sagimet Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at about $618,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sagimet Biosciences Company Profile

Sagimet Biosciences, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapies for diseases associated with abnormal lipid metabolism. The company's primary focus is fatty acid synthase (FASN), an enzyme involved in the production of fatty acids that can contribute to disease progression in certain metabolic and inflammatory conditions.

Sagimet's lead product candidate is denifanstat, formerly known as TVB-2640. Denifanstat is an orally administered, selective FASN inhibitor being evaluated primarily for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), a chronic liver disease that can lead to fibrosis, cirrhosis and other serious complications.

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