Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Lowered to Strong Sell Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

RYTM has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $129.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.29.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $102.59 on Monday. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $45.90 and a 1 year high of $122.20. The stock has a market cap of $6.85 billion, a PE ratio of -33.09 and a beta of 2.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $106.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.75.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.82) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by ($0.10). Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 110.32% and a negative return on equity of 433.21%. The firm had revenue of $51.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.71 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, insider Joseph Shulman sold 9,748 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.24, for a total value of $1,123,359.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,509 shares in the company, valued at $980,577.16. This represents a 53.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Pamela J. Cramer sold 3,350 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.00, for a total transaction of $371,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 20,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,310,354. The trade was a 13.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,913 shares of company stock valued at $1,818,963. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 97.2% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 286 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 1,110.3% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 65.2% during the third quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 365 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 361 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 65.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the last quarter.

About Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical‐stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing targeted therapies for rare genetic diseases of obesity and metabolic dysfunction. The company’s research focuses on the melanocortin‐4 receptor (MC4R) pathway, which plays a central role in regulating appetite, energy expenditure and body weight. Using proprietary peptide technology, Rhythm aims to provide precision treatments to patients with specific genetic variants that disrupt normal weight regulation.

The company’s lead investigational product, setmelanotide, is a selective MC4R agonist designed to restore signaling in patients with deficiencies in genes such as POMC, LEPR and PCSK1.