Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Trading Up 6.8% Following Analyst Upgrade

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX)’s stock price was up 6.8% on Tuesday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $121.00 to $145.00. Truist Financial currently has a buy rating on the stock. Protagonist Therapeutics traded as high as $139.09 and last traded at $140.4710. Approximately 571,209 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 24% from the average daily volume of 751,343 shares. The stock had previously closed at $131.50.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $121.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Leerink Partners increased their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $107.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. One investment 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. According to MarketBeat, Protagonist Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $116.93.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Bryan Giraudo sold 36,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.14, for a total transaction of $3,605,040.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 27,825 shares in the company, valued at $2,786,395.50. This trade represents a 56.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.12, for a total transaction of $7,509,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 523,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,410,617.36. The trade was a 12.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 162,880 shares of company stock worth $16,539,792 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 5.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Protagonist Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 110.6% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 297 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Greenline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 63.0% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 911 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 222.4% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. Finally, Canton Hathaway LLC purchased a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $87,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.63% of the company’s stock.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Up 6.6%

The business’s fifty day moving average is $107.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.70. The stock has a market cap of $9.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -77.61 and a beta of 1.79.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.50) by $0.55. Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 17.76% and a negative net margin of 154.88%.The business had revenue of $56.37 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.70 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current year.

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.