Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Stock Price Up 11.9% Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM - Get Free Report) shot up 11.9% on Tuesday after Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on the stock from $81.00 to $92.00. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals traded as high as $59.11 and last traded at $61.48. 97,534 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 524,587 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.96.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on RYTM. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $72.00 target price on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $76.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $75.00 price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $74.92.

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Insider Activity

In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Hunter C. Smith sold 1,678 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.43, for a total value of $99,723.54. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 101,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,013,483.98. This trade represents a 1.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Yann Mazabraud sold 75,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.48, for a total transaction of $3,861,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,370 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,078,247.60. The trade was a 65.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 146,641 shares of company stock worth $8,112,177 over the last quarter. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RYTM. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 3.6% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 85,719 shares of the company's stock worth $4,541,000 after purchasing an additional 2,988 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 7,305.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,885 shares of the company's stock valued at $788,000 after buying an additional 14,684 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $4,259,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $72,000. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 380,537 shares of the company's stock worth $21,302,000 after acquiring an additional 27,214 shares during the last quarter.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The company's 50 day moving average price is $54.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.34. The stock has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.75 and a beta of 2.32.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.72) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.69) by ($0.03). Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 230.07% and a negative return on equity of 367.36%. The firm had revenue of $41.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $38.48 million. On average, analysts forecast that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.