Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PTGX) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $40.39, but opened at $38.27. Protagonist Therapeutics shares last traded at $35.33, with a volume of 371,785 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on PTGX. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $58.00 target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $41.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. JMP Securities reduced their target price on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics in a report on Monday, September 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Protagonist Therapeutics from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Protagonist Therapeutics presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $53.57.

Protagonist Therapeutics Stock Down 7.7 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $45.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.90. The stock has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.64 and a beta of 2.17.

Insider Activity at Protagonist Therapeutics

In other Protagonist Therapeutics news, CFO Asif Ali sold 14,203 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.49, for a total transaction of $631,891.47. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,555,370.40. This trade represents a 28.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William D. Waddill sold 8,000 shares of Protagonist Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $360,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $540,000. This represents a 40.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farallon Capital Management LLC raised its position in Protagonist Therapeutics by 1.8% in the second quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 5,840,773 shares of the company's stock worth $202,383,000 after purchasing an additional 101,800 shares in the last quarter. RTW Investments LP grew its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 2.6% in the third quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 5,426,112 shares of the company's stock valued at $244,175,000 after acquiring an additional 139,708 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Protagonist Therapeutics by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,192,971 shares of the company's stock worth $92,373,000 after purchasing an additional 39,055 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 52.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,183,542 shares of the company's stock worth $143,259,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101,218 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Protagonist Therapeutics by 405,061.2% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,734,090 shares of the company's stock valued at $78,034,000 after purchasing an additional 1,733,662 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.63% of the company's stock.

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.

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