Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $109.24 and last traded at $108.5090, with a volume of 72449 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $105.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PTGX. Barclays raised their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $113.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Protagonist Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.21.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Up 3.8%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $101.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.11. The company has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a PE ratio of -60.66 and a beta of 1.85.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.50) by $0.55. Protagonist Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 17.76% and a negative net margin of 154.88%.The company had revenue of $56.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.70 million. Equities analysts expect that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, CEO Dinesh V. Ph D. Patel sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.12, for a total value of $7,509,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 523,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,410,617.36. This trade represents a 12.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bryan Giraudo sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total value of $600,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 31,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,182,500. The trade was a 15.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 272,345 shares of company stock valued at $27,676,386 in the last 90 days. 5.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 110.6% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 297 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Greenline Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 138.9% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 540 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the third quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 222.4% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 951 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. 98.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.