PTC Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTCT) Shares Cross Above 50 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTCT)’s stock price crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $65.12 and traded as high as $68.72. PTC Therapeutics shares last traded at $68.12, with a volume of 2,643,738 shares traded.

PTC Therapeutics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting PTC Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PTC’s board authorized repurchases of up to $500 million of common stock, equivalent to as much as 9.8% of outstanding shares. The program is subject to market conditions and may signal management’s confidence in the company’s value; buybacks can also reduce the share count if carried out. PTC Therapeutics announces $500 million share repurchase program
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its price target to $109 from $108 and maintained a Buy rating. Other reports also noted higher price targets, including $95 and $112. Citigroup raises PTC Therapeutics price target
• Neutral Sentiment: A report on the healthcare sector’s broad advance included PTCT among the stocks moving higher, suggesting a supportive industry backdrop but not a company-specific catalyst. Healthcare stocks move higher
• Neutral Sentiment: The company said executives will participate in upcoming investor conferences, including the Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference on Nov. 16. PTC Therapeutics to participate in upcoming investor conferences

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PTCT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of PTC Therapeutics from $93.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Citigroup increased their price objective on PTC Therapeutics from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on PTC Therapeutics from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on PTC Therapeutics from $130.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on PTC Therapeutics from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.71.

PTC Therapeutics Stock Up 11.9%

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $65.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.66. The company has a market capitalization of $5.69 billion, a PE ratio of -48.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.52.

PTC Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTCT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.62) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.76). The business had revenue of $357.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.43 million. PTC Therapeutics’s quarterly revenue was up 69.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.20 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that PTC Therapeutics, Inc. will post 0.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PTC Therapeutics announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 3rd that allows the company to repurchase $500 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the biopharmaceutical company to reacquire up to 9.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at PTC Therapeutics

In other news, Director Glenn Steele, Jr. sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.16, for a total transaction of $781,920.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,466,100. This trade represents a 34.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Michael Schmertzler sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.61, for a total transaction of $149,025.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,291,594 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,991,918.34. This represents a 0.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 67,078 shares of company stock valued at $4,616,538. Company insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of PTC Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PTCT. Ethic Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PTC Therapeutics by 105.6% during the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 11,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $770,000 after purchasing an additional 6,100 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in PTC Therapeutics during the third quarter valued at about $354,000. CenterBook Partners LP boosted its position in PTC Therapeutics by 25.1% during the third quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 47,292 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,064,000 after purchasing an additional 9,497 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in PTC Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $276,000. Finally, Profund Advisors LLC grew its stake in PTC Therapeutics by 56.2% in the third quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 35,877 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,324,000 after purchasing an additional 12,904 shares during the last quarter.

About PTC Therapeutics

PTC Therapeutics, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing medicines for rare diseases. Its research programs include small-molecule treatments, gene therapies and other approaches designed to address conditions with limited or no available treatment options.

The company’s commercial portfolio has included Emflaza (deflazacort), a corticosteroid approved in the United States to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and Upstaza (eladocagene exuparvovec), a gene therapy authorized in the European Union for aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase deficiency.