Prothena (NASDAQ:PRTA) Major Shareholder Acquires $981,000.00 in Stock

Prothena Corporation plc (NASDAQ:PRTA) major shareholder William Scully acquired 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $9.81 per share, for a total transaction of $981,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 836,000 shares in the company, valued at $8,201,160. This represents a 13.59% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Prothena Stock Down 0.7%

PRTA traded down $0.07 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $9.76. 553,480 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 499,788. The company’s 50-day moving average is $10.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.76. The company has a market cap of $510.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of -0.23. Prothena Corporation plc has a 12-month low of $4.32 and a 12-month high of $11.80.

Prothena (NASDAQ:PRTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.31) by $0.91. Prothena had a negative return on equity of 43.44% and a negative net margin of 260.92%.The business had revenue of $51.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.81 million. Equities analysts forecast that Prothena Corporation plc will post 0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on PRTA. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Prothena from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings raised Prothena from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Prothena in a report on Friday, May 8th. Citizens Jmp raised their price target on Prothena from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $19.00 price target on Prothena in a report on Friday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.78.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prothena

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Prothena by 571.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 12,709 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 10,815 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prothena during the 4th quarter valued at about $100,000. PDT Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prothena during the 4th quarter valued at about $108,000. Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Prothena during the 2nd quarter valued at about $113,000. Finally, DRW Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prothena during the 4th quarter valued at about $114,000. 97.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prothena Company Profile

Prothena Corporation plc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel therapies for neurodegenerative and rare diseases driven by misfolded proteins. The company’s research focuses on immunotherapies and small molecules designed to target and clear disease-causing protein aggregates. Prothena leverages proprietary protein engineering and antibody discovery platforms to advance candidates through preclinical and clinical stages.

The company’s most advanced program is an antibody targeting aggregated alpha-synuclein for the potential treatment of Parkinson’s disease, currently in mid-stage clinical trials.