Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Sets New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Protagonist Therapeutics' stock reached a new **52-week high** of $61.97, closing at $61.58 with a trading volume of 513,959 shares.
• Analysts have a generally positive outlook, with **two Strong Buy ratings** and a predicted average price target of **$68.08** for the stock.
• The company reported **$5.55 million** in revenue and a loss of **$0.55 EPS**, missing consensus estimates for the quarter.

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $61.97 and last traded at $61.58, with a volume of 513959 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $59.22.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Friday, September 12th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. JMP Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $68.08.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Performance

The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $56.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.81. The firm has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 92.16 and a beta of 2.22.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.55) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.53) by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $5.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.32 million. Protagonist Therapeutics had a net margin of 24.88% and a return on equity of 8.12%. On average, analysts expect that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Protagonist Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 10,415 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.78, for a total value of $570,533.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 520,603 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,518,632.34. This represents a 1.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William D. Waddill sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.25, for a total transaction of $237,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 9,130 shares in the company, valued at $540,952.50. This trade represents a 30.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 66,859 shares of company stock worth $3,687,577 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 4.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Protagonist Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Protagonist Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $27,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 171.0% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 504 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 201.5% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 609 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 79.5% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,185 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 153.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 728 shares during the last quarter. 98.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Protagonist Therapeutics Company Profile

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops peptide-based drugs for hematology and blood disorders, and inflammatory and immunomodulatory diseases. It is developing Rusfertide (PTG-300), an injectable hepcidin mimetic that completed phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of polycythemia vera and other blood disorders; and JNJ-2113, an orally delivered investigational drug to block biological pathways that completed phase 2b clinical trials for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis; and PN-943, an orally delivered, gut-restricted alpha 4 beta 7 specific integrin antagonist completed a phase 2 clinical trials in patients with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis.