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

Key Points

• Sagimet Biosciences shares jumped 9.6%, opening at $10.61 versus a prior close of $9.33, before trading near $9.89.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive: nine analysts rate SGMT a Buy, one Hold, and two Sell, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $25.34.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.26 per share, slightly worse than expectations, while insiders sold shares primarily to cover tax obligations; institutional investors own 87.86% of the stock.

Sagimet Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:SGMT - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday. The stock had previously closed at $9.33, but opened at $10.61. Sagimet Biosciences shares last traded at $9.89, with a volume of 864,657 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SGMT. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Sagimet Biosciences in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sagimet Biosciences from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Sagimet Biosciences in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $10.71 target price for the company. Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Sagimet Biosciences in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Sagimet Biosciences from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $25.34.

Sagimet Biosciences Trading Up 9.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $635.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.01 and a beta of 3.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $9.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.68.

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

Insider Transactions at Sagimet Biosciences

In related news, CEO David Happel sold 64,051 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.76, for a total transaction of $497,035.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 741,570 shares in the company, valued at $5,754,583.20. This trade represents a 7.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Elizabeth Rozek sold 10,545 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.76, for a total transaction of $81,829.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 224,414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,741,452.64. This trade represents a 4.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,646 shares of company stock valued at $920,491. 11.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sagimet Biosciences

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SGMT. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sagimet Biosciences by 82.6% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 625,469 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,268,000 after purchasing an additional 282,969 shares in the last quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP bought a new position in Sagimet Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,119,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Sagimet Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,551,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Sagimet Biosciences by 99.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 271,217 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,415,000 after buying an additional 135,178 shares during the period. Finally, AWM Investment Company Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sagimet Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $618,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Sagimet Biosciences

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.

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.