Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Saturday morning.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on PTGX. Zacks Research raised Protagonist Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, July 17th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ PTGX opened at $135.56 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $8.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -74.90 and a beta of 1.79. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $117.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.83. Protagonist Therapeutics has a one year low of $50.49 and a one year high of $143.29.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.50) by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $56.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.70 million. Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 154.88% and a negative return on equity of 17.76%. Equities analysts predict that Protagonist Therapeutics will post 3.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William D. Waddill sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $922,880.50. This trade represents a 53.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bryan Giraudo sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $600,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 31,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,182,500. The trade was a 15.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 161,130 shares of company stock worth $16,355,220. 5.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Protagonist Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 110.6% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 297 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Greenline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 79.5% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,185 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 222.4% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 951 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canton Hathaway LLC acquired a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $87,000. 98.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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 ?4?7 integrin antagonist intended to block leukocyte migration to the gut in ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease.