Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Trading Down 5.6% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) fell 5.6% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $85.04 and last traded at $84.33. 448,795 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 55% from the average session volume of 1,001,729 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.34.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Protagonist Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Protagonist Therapeutics from $68.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.08.

Protagonist Therapeutics Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $5.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 138.79 and a beta of 2.19. The company’s 50-day moving average is $83.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.32.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.62) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.59) by ($0.03). Protagonist Therapeutics had a net margin of 21.94% and a return on equity of 6.86%. The firm had revenue of $4.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.41 million. On average, analysts expect that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, Director William D. Waddill sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.62, for a total value of $979,440.00. Following the sale, the director owned 5,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $418,710.60. This trade represents a 70.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 4.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Protagonist Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics during the first quarter valued at about $7,388,000. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at approximately $315,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 11,479.3% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $162,000 after buying an additional 3,329 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D acquired a new stake in Protagonist Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,599,000. Finally, Algert Global LLC boosted its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 18,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $903,000 after buying an additional 945 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.63% of the company’s stock.

About Protagonist Therapeutics

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 ?4?7 integrin antagonist intended to block leukocyte migration to the gut in ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease.