Wall Street Zen Upgrades Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) to Hold

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group set a $143.00 price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $139.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $145.00 to $139.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $136.00 to $131.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.81.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $94.17 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $87.93 and its 200-day moving average is $99.24. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $55.31 and a 1 year high of $122.20. The company has a market cap of $6.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -30.09 and a beta of 1.94.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.83) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.86) by $0.03. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 93.33% and a negative return on equity of 203.25%. The company had revenue of $60.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.78 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.81) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 83.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -3.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, CAO Christopher Paul German sold 5,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.56, for a total transaction of $502,789.84. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,329.60. This trade represents a 97.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Hunter C. Smith sold 4,385 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total transaction of $444,025.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 110,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,190,445.12. The trade was a 3.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 20,639 shares of company stock worth $2,017,217. 5.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 48.9% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $603,000 after buying an additional 2,279 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 79.9% during the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 80,620 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,012,000 after buying an additional 35,815 shares during the period. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC increased its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 84.0% during the 1st quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 9,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $809,000 after buying an additional 4,245 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 112,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,758,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 3,125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 386 shares in the last quarter.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical‐stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing targeted therapies for rare genetic diseases of obesity and metabolic dysfunction. The company’s research focuses on the melanocortin‐4 receptor (MC4R) pathway, which plays a central role in regulating appetite, energy expenditure and body weight. Using proprietary peptide technology, Rhythm aims to provide precision treatments to patients with specific genetic variants that disrupt normal weight regulation.

The company’s lead investigational product, setmelanotide, is a selective MC4R agonist designed to restore signaling in patients with deficiencies in genes such as POMC, LEPR and PCSK1.