Madrigal Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MDGL) Lowered to Strong Sell Rating by Zacks Research

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MDGL) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on MDGL. Bank of America upgraded Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $266.00 to $445.00 in a report on Monday, November 3rd. UBS Group set a $900.00 price objective on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from $485.00 to $527.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals from $526.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $579.00 price target on shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Madrigal Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $617.07.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $493.90 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 3.26 and a current ratio of 3.44. Madrigal Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $265.00 and a fifty-two week high of $615.00. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $560.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $449.07. The company has a market capitalization of $11.22 billion, a PE ratio of -37.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of -1.00.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MDGL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($5.08) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.01) by ($3.07). Madrigal Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 41.50% and a negative net margin of 39.04%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Madrigal Pharmaceuticals will post -23.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kenneth Bate sold 16,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $484.30, for a total value of $8,027,272.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,627 shares in the company, valued at $1,272,256.10. This represents a 86.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Mardi Dier sold 4,173 shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $578.34, for a total value of $2,413,412.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,440 shares in the company, valued at $6,037,869.60. This trade represents a 28.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 120,506 shares of company stock worth $64,037,125 over the last ninety days. 21.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Madrigal Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 412.5% during the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 82 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals by 221.7% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 74 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Aventura Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Madrigal Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 98.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of innovative therapies for cardiovascular, metabolic and liver diseases. The company’s pipeline centers on novel, liver-directed agents designed to address significant unmet medical needs, with an emphasis on nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and related metabolic disorders.

The lead product candidate, resmetirom (MGL-3196), is an orally administered, selective thyroid hormone receptor-β agonist in Phase 3 development for the treatment of NASH.