Dinesh Ph Patel Sells 54,641 Shares of Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Stock

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) CEO Dinesh Ph Patel sold 54,641 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total transaction of $5,518,741.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 524,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,018,738. The trade was a 9.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Protagonist Therapeutics Trading Up 3.9%

PTGX stock traded up $3.92 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $104.31. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 812,152 shares, compared to its average volume of 937,182. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.60 and a 1 year high of $105.69. The company’s fifty day moving average is $88.30 and its 200-day moving average is $81.90.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($0.69) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.53) by ($0.16). Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 282.83% and a negative return on equity of 19.89%. The business had revenue of $7.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.92 million. On average, analysts predict that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 18.7% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 813,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,990,000 after buying an additional 128,171 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 305,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,289,000 after acquiring an additional 25,065 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 74.3% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 30,204 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,669,000 after acquiring an additional 12,871 shares during the period. Farallon Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 0.4% during the third quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,196,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $411,601,000 after acquiring an additional 24,000 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 2,043.8% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 41,246 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,740,000 after acquiring an additional 39,322 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on PTGX shares. Johnson Rice reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Citizens Jmp boosted their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Barclays increased their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $113.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $107.31.

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.