Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Given New $130.00 Price Target at Needham & Company LLC

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) had its price target dropped by investment analysts at Needham & Company LLC from $139.00 to $130.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 43.63% from the stock’s previous close.

RYTM has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $136.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Citizens Jmp increased their price objective on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $167.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $131.00 target price on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.75.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

RYTM stock opened at $90.51 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $6.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -29.10 and a beta of 2.06. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $102.91. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $45.90 and a 52 week high of $122.20.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.73) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.79) by $0.06. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 103.57% and a negative return on equity of 266.56%. The firm had revenue of $57.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.16 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.72) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 36.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Hunter C. Smith sold 4,385 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total value of $444,025.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 110,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,190,445.12. The trade was a 3.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Christopher Paul German sold 5,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.56, for a total value of $502,789.84. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,329.60. The trade was a 97.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 27,267 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,955. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of RYTM. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 303.0% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 266 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 97.2% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 1,110.3% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 351 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 365 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 73.2% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 343 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the last quarter.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical‐stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing targeted therapies for rare genetic diseases of obesity and metabolic dysfunction. The company’s research focuses on the melanocortin‐4 receptor (MC4R) pathway, which plays a central role in regulating appetite, energy expenditure and body weight. Using proprietary peptide technology, Rhythm aims to provide precision treatments to patients with specific genetic variants that disrupt normal weight regulation.

The company’s lead investigational product, setmelanotide, is a selective MC4R agonist designed to restore signaling in patients with deficiencies in genes such as POMC, LEPR and PCSK1.