Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Sets New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on the stock from $112.00 to $178.00. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Protagonist Therapeutics traded as high as $158.95 and last traded at $158.62, with a volume of 506956 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.10.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $130.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Barclays upped their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $151.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wedbush lifted their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $118.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Protagonist Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $110.00 to $186.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Protagonist Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.53.

Insider Transactions at Protagonist Therapeutics

In related news, Director William D. Waddill sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.94, for a total value of $1,061,460.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $922,880.50. This represents a 53.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 65,761 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.11, for a total transaction of $9,805,622.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 523,478 shares in the company, valued at $78,055,804.58. This trade represents a 11.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 127,000 shares of company stock valued at $17,818,139. 5.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Protagonist Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PTGX. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 110.6% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 297 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Greenline Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 98.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Down 0.8%

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $132.01 and a 200-day moving average of $108.83. The company has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 152.76 and a beta of 1.78.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $213.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $212.03 million. Protagonist Therapeutics had a return on equity of 12.03% and a net margin of 29.40%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3746.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 4.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Protagonist Therapeutics Company Profile

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.