Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $126.59 intraday, reflecting strong recent momentum in the stock.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with multiple firms raising price targets; the stock carries a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $115.21.
• The company recently beat quarterly expectations, posting $0.05 EPS versus a loss estimate and revenue of $56.37 million, while institutional ownership remains high at 98.63%.

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $126.59 and last traded at $120.5520, with a volume of 23263 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $121.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $113.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Wedbush raised their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $110.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Leerink Partners increased their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $107.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $115.21.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $104.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $95.21. The stock has a market cap of $7.67 billion, a P/E ratio of -66.21 and a beta of 1.86.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $56.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.70 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Protagonist Therapeutics

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, CFO Asif Ali sold 1,750 shares of Protagonist Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.47, for a total transaction of $184,572.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 59,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,223,046.41. The trade was a 2.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 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 value of $1,061,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 7,825 shares in the company, valued at $922,880.50. This represents a 53.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 162,880 shares of company stock worth $16,539,792 in the last quarter. 5.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PTGX. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 30.6% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 9,964 shares of the company's stock valued at $482,000 after buying an additional 2,334 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 37,403 shares of the company's stock worth $1,810,000 after buying an additional 348 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 283.6% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 134,269 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,493,000 after buying an additional 99,269 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $987,000. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 1.6% during the second quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 19,208 shares of the company's stock worth $1,062,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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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