Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Share Price Passes Below 50-Day Moving Average of $28.56

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) crossed below its 50-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of $28.56 and traded as low as $25.35. Protagonist Therapeutics shares last traded at $25.57, with a volume of 517,565 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on PTGX shares. StockNews.com upgraded Protagonist Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.00.

Protagonist Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.19 and a beta of 2.01.

Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $60.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.00 million. Research analysts anticipate that Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. will post 1.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director William D. Waddill sold 12,975 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.34, for a total transaction of $406,636.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $376,080. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, Director William D. Waddill sold 12,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.34, for a total value of $406,636.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $376,080. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Asif Ali sold 14,248 shares of Protagonist Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.24, for a total value of $459,355.52. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,397 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,237,919.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 82,223 shares of company stock valued at $2,522,342. Corporate insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Protagonist Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PTGX. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 96.4% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 723 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 88.1% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 1,460 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 60.1% during the 2nd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,217 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 1,583 shares during the period. Virtus ETF Advisers LLC increased its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 29.6% during the 4th quarter. Virtus ETF Advisers LLC now owns 4,457 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 1,017 shares during the period. Finally, Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 4,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the period. 98.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Protagonist Therapeutics

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops peptide-based drugs for hematology and blood disorders, and inflammatory and immunomodulatory diseases. It is developing Rusfertide (PTG-300), an injectable hepcidin mimetic that completed phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of polycythemia vera and other blood disorders; and JNJ-2113, an orally delivered investigational drug to block biological pathways that completed phase 2b clinical trials for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis; and PN-943, an orally delivered, gut-restricted alpha 4 beta 7 specific integrin antagonist completed a phase 2 clinical trials in patients with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis.