Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Acquires 288,376 Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $RYTM

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its holdings in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM) by 21.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,629,468 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 288,376 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned approximately 2.45% of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals worth $102,966,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in RYTM. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $11,025,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 95,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,036,000 after purchasing an additional 2,412 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 39.6% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 17,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,088,000 after buying an additional 4,889 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 7.2% in the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 312,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,745,000 after buying an additional 20,983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey grew its holdings in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% during the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 12,359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $781,000 after buying an additional 704 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on RYTM shares. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $122.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $105.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. One equities research 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 assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $113.23.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $105.80 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $102.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.88. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a one year low of $45.90 and a one year high of $116.00. The stock has a market cap of $7.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.47 and a beta of 2.12.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.82) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by ($0.10). Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 117.13% and a negative return on equity of 1,831.43%. The firm had revenue of $51.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.71 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph Shulman sold 14,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.03, for a total value of $1,617,377.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $953,263.27. This represents a 62.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 27,000 shares of company stock worth $3,064,490. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Profile

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the rare neuroendocrine diseases. The company's lead product candidate is IMCIVREE (setmelanotide), a rare melanocortin-4 receptor for the treatment of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 1, leptin receptor (LEPR) deficiency obesity, and Bardet-Biedl and Alström syndrome.