Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Protagonist Therapeutics has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” from 17 analysts, with 13 buy ratings and 2 strong buy ratings; the average 12-month price target is $123.
• The stock was trading up 6.7% and opened at $140.91, near its 52-week high of $141.10, while the company has a market cap of about $9.06 billion.
• Recent earnings beat expectations, with $0.05 EPS versus a forecast loss of $0.50 and revenue of $56.37 million, though insiders have sold shares recently, including CEO Dinesh V. Patel and Director William D. Waddill.

Shares of Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $123.00.

A number of analysts have recently commented on PTGX shares. Johnson Rice set a $165.00 target price on Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $135.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Protagonist Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th. Barclays lifted their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $119.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wedbush boosted their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th.

Protagonist Therapeutics Trading Up 6.7%

Shares of Protagonist Therapeutics stock opened at $140.91 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.64. The stock has a market cap of $9.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -77.85 and a beta of 1.79. Protagonist Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $50.49 and a 12-month high of $141.10.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.50) by $0.55. Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 154.88% and a negative return on equity of 17.76%. The firm had revenue of $56.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.70 million. On average, analysts forecast that Protagonist Therapeutics will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Protagonist Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.12, for a total transaction of $7,509,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 523,478 shares in the company, valued at $52,410,617.36. This represents a 12.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director William D. Waddill sold 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.94, for a total transaction of $1,061,460.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,825 shares in the company, valued at $922,880.50. The trade was a 53.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 162,880 shares of company stock valued at $16,539,792. Insiders own 5.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Protagonist Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PTGX. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 110.6% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 297 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 13,393 shares of the company's stock worth $1,170,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 8,603 shares of the company's stock worth $751,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 7.8% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,760 shares of the company's stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,109 shares of the company's stock valued at $381,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.63% of the company's stock.

About Protagonist Therapeutics

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: PTGX is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel, orally administered peptide-based therapies for immune-mediated and other serious diseases. The company leverages its proprietary Peptide 2.0 platform to design peptides that target G protein–coupled receptors and cytokine receptors, with the goal of combining the potency of biologics with the convenience of oral administration. Protagonist's approach aims to address unmet medical needs in areas where injectable therapies have been the standard of care.

Among its lead programs is PTG-100, an oral α4β7 integrin antagonist intended to block leukocyte migration to the gut in ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease.

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