Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Insider Arturo Md Molina Sells 9,514 Shares

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) insider Arturo Md Molina sold 9,514 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.48, for a total value of $784,714.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 97,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,022,499.68. This trade represents a 8.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PTGX traded up $0.47 on Wednesday, hitting $83.89. 1,086,072 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 945,052. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 135.31 and a beta of 2.26. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.70 and a 52 week high of $96.54. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $86.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.29.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.62) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.59) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $4.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.41 million. Protagonist Therapeutics had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 6.86%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PTGX has been the topic of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Monday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $68.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Weiss Ratings raised Protagonist Therapeutics from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Finally, Johnson Rice set a $112.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Monday, October 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.77.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics during the third quarter worth about $72,114,000. Commodore Capital LP purchased a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $59,415,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 83.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,908,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,778,000 after purchasing an additional 870,708 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 218.0% in the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,092,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,369,000 after buying an additional 748,758 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BVF Inc. IL increased its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 24.7% in the second quarter. BVF Inc. IL now owns 3,211,041 shares of the company’s stock worth $177,474,000 after buying an additional 636,026 shares during the last quarter. 98.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Protagonist Therapeutics Company Profile

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.