Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) EVP Yann Mazabraud Sells 57,000 Shares

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM) EVP Yann Mazabraud sold 57,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.15, for a total value of $6,620,550.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 55,655 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,464,328.25. This represents a 50.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:RYTM traded down $0.54 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $115.48. The stock had a trading volume of 334,875 shares, compared to its average volume of 730,495. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.91 billion, a PE ratio of -37.13 and a beta of 1.92. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $74.50 and a 52 week high of $122.20. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $105.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.45.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.73) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.81) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $71.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.66 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 159.87% and a negative net margin of 85.59%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 46.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.75) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.82 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on RYTM shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $154.00 target price on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $144.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $133.00 price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, June 15th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.44.

Institutional Trading of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $9,202,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 123.2% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 918,567 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,323,000 after acquiring an additional 507,017 shares during the period. Zweig DiMenna Associates LLC purchased a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $8,734,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 667,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,329,000 after acquiring an additional 52,383 shares during the period. Finally, Orbimed Advisors LLC lifted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 31.0% during the 1st quarter. Orbimed Advisors LLC now owns 314,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,317,000 after acquiring an additional 74,300 shares during the period.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.