Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 163,404 Shares of Prothena Co. plc (NASDAQ:PRTA)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP trimmed its position in Prothena Co. plc (NASDAQ:PRTA – Get Rating) by 11.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,320,501 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 163,404 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Prothena were worth $79,559,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PRTA. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in Prothena by 61.1% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,733 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Prothena during the 1st quarter worth approximately $141,000. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA increased its holdings in Prothena by 170.1% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA now owns 8,299 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 5,226 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC bought a new stake in Prothena during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $231,000. Finally, Wetherby Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Prothena during the 1st quarter worth approximately $241,000. 91.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on PRTA. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Prothena from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 27th. SVB Leerink restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Prothena in a research note on Monday, April 24th. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on Prothena from $75.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Friday, May 5th. StockNews.com started coverage on Prothena in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on Prothena from $98.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Monday, May 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prothena

In other Prothena news, CAO Karin L. Walker sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.42, for a total transaction of $968,400.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Prothena news, CAO Karin L. Walker sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.42, for a total transaction of $968,400.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gene G. Kinney sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.70, for a total transaction of $3,316,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $942,844.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 225,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,765,350 in the last 90 days. 28.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Prothena Trading Down 1.3 %

Prothena stock opened at $69.63 on Thursday. Prothena Co. plc has a 12 month low of $21.06 and a 12 month high of $79.65. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $56.75.

Prothena (NASDAQ:PRTA – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 4th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.89) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by ($0.06). Prothena had a negative net margin of 232.19% and a negative return on equity of 24.99%. The firm had revenue of $2.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.53 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.78) EPS. Prothena’s revenue for the quarter was up 88.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Prothena Co. plc will post -3.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prothena Company Profile

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Prothena Corp. Plc is a clinical-stage neuroscience company. It focuses on the discovery and development of novel therapies to change the course of devastating diseases. The firm’s clinical pipeline includes both wholly-owned and partnered programs being developed for the potential treatment of diseases including AL amyloidosis, ATTR amyloidosis, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases.