Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Protagonist Therapeutics has an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” from 16 brokerages, with a consensus 1-year price target of about $115.21. Recent analyst actions were mostly positive, including upgrades and raised targets from firms like Wall Street Zen, Wolfe Research, Wedbush, Leerink Partners, and Citigroup.
• The stock was up 3.4% and opened at $118.96, near its 52-week high of $119.85. Protagonist has a market cap of $7.65 billion and has posted strong recent momentum versus its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• The company reported a better-than-expected quarterly result, with EPS of $0.05 versus an expected loss of $0.50 and revenue of $56.37 million versus $11.70 million estimated. However, insiders have been selling shares recently, including the CEO and a director, while institutional ownership remains very high at 98.63%.

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $115.2143.

Several research firms recently commented on PTGX. Wall Street Zen raised Protagonist Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Wedbush raised their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Leerink Partners raised their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $107.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, May 6th.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Up 3.4%

Protagonist Therapeutics stock opened at $118.96 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $7.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -65.72 and a beta of 1.85. Protagonist Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $49.38 and a 52 week high of $119.85. The business's 50-day moving average price is $103.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.51.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last posted its 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. The firm had revenue of $56.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.70 million. Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 17.76% and a negative net margin of 154.88%. Equities analysts expect that Protagonist Therapeutics will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, Director William D. Waddill sold 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.68, for a total value of $969,120.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,825 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $842,596. This trade represents a 53.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 75,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.12, for a total value of $7,509,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 523,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,410,617.36. The trade was a 12.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 217,645 shares of company stock valued at $22,151,686 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 5.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Protagonist Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Greenline Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 138.9% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 540 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 79.5% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,185 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 222.4% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 951 shares of the company's stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. 98.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Protagonist Therapeutics Company Profile

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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