Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Given Buy Rating at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reiterated their buy rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $50.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on RYTM. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $42.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Buy and an average target price of $47.20.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of RYTM opened at $38.28 on Friday. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $15.50 and a 52-week high of $52.57. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $41.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.98.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported ($0.70) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.70). The firm had revenue of $24.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.38 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 238.50% and a negative return on equity of 96.02%. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 175.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.75) earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.02 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Joseph Shulman sold 71,774 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.38, for a total value of $3,615,974.12. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,686 shares in the company, valued at approximately $135,320.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, insider Joseph Shulman sold 71,774 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.38, for a total value of $3,615,974.12. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $135,320.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Hunter C. Smith sold 1,209 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.38, for a total value of $62,118.42. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 80,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,131,619.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 172,069 shares of company stock valued at $7,626,355 in the last quarter. Insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RYTM. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 95.7% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,458 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares during the period. AJOVista LLC purchased a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 253.1% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 1,620 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 91.5% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $69,000.

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.