Swedbank AB Acquires New Position in Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX)

Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 50,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,250,000. Swedbank AB owned about 0.08% of Protagonist Therapeutics at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PTGX. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics during the first quarter worth $35,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 1.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,192,971 shares of the company's stock worth $92,373,000 after buying an additional 39,055 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its stake in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 74.2% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 9,083 shares of the company's stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 3,870 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Protagonist Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at $69,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Protagonist Therapeutics in the second quarter worth $379,000. 98.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Performance

Protagonist Therapeutics stock traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $44.95. 569,522 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 750,584. The firm has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.90 and a beta of 2.17. The business has a fifty day moving average of $45.24 and a 200 day moving average of $39.62. Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.13 and a 12-month high of $48.89.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PTGX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Monday, September 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen raised shares of Protagonist Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com raised Protagonist Therapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JMP Securities lowered their target price on Protagonist Therapeutics from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $53.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Suneel Gupta sold 103,437 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.04, for a total transaction of $4,762,239.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 256,174 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,794,250.96. This represents a 28.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Arturo Md Molina sold 1,906 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total transaction of $78,107.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,444 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,903,275.12. This trade represents a 3.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 232,066 shares of company stock worth $10,681,738 in the last three months. 5.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.