Guggenheim Raises Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Price Target to $143.00

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) had its price target hoisted by investment analysts at Guggenheim from $140.00 to $143.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Guggenheim’s price objective points to a potential upside of 45.81% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $114.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $145.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.71.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.1%

RYTM opened at $98.07 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $104.28 and its 200 day moving average is $103.50. The company has a market cap of $6.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.64 and a beta of 2.00. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $45.90 and a 12-month high of $122.20.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.73) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.79) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $57.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.16 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 110.32% and a negative return on equity of 433.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 36.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.72) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Pamela J. Cramer sold 3,350 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.00, for a total transaction of $371,850.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 20,814 shares in the company, valued at $2,310,354. This trade represents a 13.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Hunter C. Smith sold 4,385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total transaction of $444,025.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 110,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,190,445.12. This represents a 3.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,003 shares of company stock valued at $2,589,015. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 39.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,996,427 shares of the company’s stock worth $504,589,000 after buying an additional 1,407,313 shares in the last quarter. RA Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. RA Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,666,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $713,618,000 after acquiring an additional 985,478 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 1,493.8% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 979,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,938,000 after acquiring an additional 918,212 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 445.5% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 783,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,513,000 after acquiring an additional 639,919 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors bought a new position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $60,417,000.

About Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical‐stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing targeted therapies for rare genetic diseases of obesity and metabolic dysfunction. The company’s research focuses on the melanocortin‐4 receptor (MC4R) pathway, which plays a central role in regulating appetite, energy expenditure and body weight. Using proprietary peptide technology, Rhythm aims to provide precision treatments to patients with specific genetic variants that disrupt normal weight regulation.

The company’s lead investigational product, setmelanotide, is a selective MC4R agonist designed to restore signaling in patients with deficiencies in genes such as POMC, LEPR and PCSK1.