Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:RYTM)

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors acquired 3,047 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 988% compared to the average daily volume of 280 call options.

Insider Activity at Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

In related news, insider Joseph Shulman sold 5,313 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total transaction of $265,703.13. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 30 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,500.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, Director Lynn A. Tetrault sold 4,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total value of $215,043.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $150,030. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph Shulman sold 5,313 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total value of $265,703.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,500.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 73,682 shares of company stock worth $3,476,642 in the last 90 days. 5.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RYTM. Perceptive Advisors LLC grew its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 465.6% during the 4th quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 2,154,110 shares of the company's stock worth $99,024,000 after acquiring an additional 1,773,282 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 381.2% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 730,643 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,659,000 after buying an additional 578,800 shares during the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 38.2% in the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 1,182,370 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,548,000 after buying an additional 326,865 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 116.1% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 577,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,001,000 after buying an additional 310,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artisan Partners Limited Partnership bought a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $12,477,000.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of RYTM traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $49.28. The company had a trading volume of 420,419 shares, compared to its average volume of 555,086. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $20.97 and a twelve month high of $53.92. The company's 50-day moving average is $46.97 and its 200-day moving average is $42.73. The company has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.60 and a beta of 2.07.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.55) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.71) by $0.16. The business had revenue of $29.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.79 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 221.65% and a negative net margin of 254.88%. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was up 51.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.82) EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $55.83.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the rare neuroendocrine diseases. The company's lead product candidate is IMCIVREE (setmelanotide), a rare melanocortin-4 receptor for the treatment of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 1, leptin receptor (LEPR) deficiency obesity, and Bardet-Biedl and Alström syndrome.