Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) CEO Dinesh Ph Patel Sells 19,315 Shares

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) CEO Dinesh Ph Patel sold 19,315 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.59, for a total transaction of $1,633,855.85. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 574,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,597,377.95. This trade represents a 3.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PTGX opened at $83.08 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 134.00 and a beta of 2.26. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $33.70 and a one year high of $96.54. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.41.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Protagonist Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Protagonist Therapeutics by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 297 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in Protagonist Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in the second quarter worth $27,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 171.0% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 504 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 138.9% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the period. 98.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Protagonist Therapeutics News

Here are the key news stories impacting Protagonist Therapeutics this week:

• Negative Sentiment: CEO Dinesh V. Patel sold a total of 48,273 shares across three transactions (Jan. 23, Jan. 26 and Jan. 27) at prices between ~$83.19–$84.59, totaling roughly $4.06M. He still holds 574,505 shares. Large, repeated CEO sales may signal diversification or cashing-out at recent price levels and can be perceived negatively by the market. CEO filings
• Negative Sentiment: CFO Asif Ali sold 46,203 shares on Jan. 27 at an average price of $83.13 for about $3.84M, reducing his stake by ~43% to 60,320 shares. A CFO trimming nearly half of his position is a more notable red flag for investors because of the officer’s financial perspective and the size of the reduction. CFO filing
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Arturo Md Molina sold 13,151 shares on Jan. 23 (avg $82.42) and 5,000 shares on Jan. 27 (avg $82.00), totaling 18,151 shares and roughly $1.49M in proceeds; he retains 84,115 shares. Multiple insider sales by senior executives and directors can collectively amplify negative market perception. Insider filings

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. 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. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Barclays lifted their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $88.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Citizens Jmp increased their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $69.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Wedbush raised their price target on Protagonist Therapeutics from $70.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Protagonist Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.77.

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 α4β7 integrin antagonist intended to block leukocyte migration to the gut in ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease.