Primecap Management Co. CA Reduces Stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM)

Primecap Management Co. CA decreased its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,571,190 shares of the company’s stock after selling 645,721 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA owned 10.69% of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals worth $367,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $287,000. Swiss National Bank increased its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 90,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,049,000 after buying an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $341,000. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $207,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $218,000.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer Kayden Lee sold 2,035 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.22, for a total transaction of $116,442.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $335,194.76. The trade was a 25.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Christopher Paul German sold 635 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.22, for a total value of $36,334.70. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $118,445.40. The trade was a 23.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,787 shares of company stock worth $1,901,443 over the last quarter. 5.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on RYTM. HC Wainwright raised their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Oppenheimer began coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.31.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.7 %

Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $52.34 on Tuesday. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $35.17 and a twelve month high of $68.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.09 and a beta of 2.30. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $55.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.73.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.72) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $41.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.48 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 367.36% and a negative net margin of 230.07%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -4.32 EPS for the current year.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Profile

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the rare neuroendocrine diseases. The company's lead product candidate is IMCIVREE (setmelanotide), a rare melanocortin-4 receptor for the treatment of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 1, leptin receptor (LEPR) deficiency obesity, and Bardet-Biedl and Alström syndrome.