Needham & Company LLC Reaffirms Buy Rating for Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM)

Needham & Company LLC reiterated their buy rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) in a research report report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $55.00 price target on the stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. JMP Securities initiated coverage on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $64.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, October 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.33.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

RYTM opened at $49.01 on Wednesday. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $23.26 and a fifty-two week high of $55.64. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $49.63 and its 200 day moving average is $44.95. The stock has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.24 and a beta of 2.07.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.55) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.71) by $0.16. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 254.88% and a negative return on equity of 221.65%. The company had revenue of $29.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.79 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.82) EPS. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 51.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Pamela J. Cramer sold 49,006 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.15, for a total transaction of $2,212,620.90. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $609,525. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Pamela J. Cramer sold 49,006 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.15, for a total transaction of $2,212,620.90. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $609,525. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jennifer L. Good sold 31,751 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.40, for a total transaction of $1,663,752.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $157,200. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 109,857 shares of company stock worth $5,325,446. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC raised its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 62.6% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 657 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $51,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth about $63,000. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 513.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,662 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391 shares during the period. Finally, ZRC Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 392.8% in the 1st quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 1,571 shares during the period.

About Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

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.