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

Needham & Company LLC restated their buy rating on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) in a research report report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $66.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on RYTM. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Oppenheimer began coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $76.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America upgraded Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $63.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $78.00 price target on the stock. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.92.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of RYTM opened at $57.83 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $54.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $55.29. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $35.17 and a fifty-two week high of $68.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of -13.36 and a beta of 2.32.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.72) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $41.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.48 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 230.07% and a negative return on equity of 367.36%. Equities research analysts forecast that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.32 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Yann Mazabraud sold 17,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.99, for a total value of $1,082,572.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,620 shares in the company, valued at $1,379,593.80. This represents a 43.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Pamela J. Cramer sold 20,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.14, for a total value of $1,248,506.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,155,229.26. This trade represents a 51.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 146,641 shares of company stock valued at $8,112,177. 5.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 103.9% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,219,554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,309,000 after purchasing an additional 621,432 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 70.4% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 692,803 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,783,000 after acquiring an additional 286,188 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $11,512,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 224.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 264,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,811,000 after acquiring an additional 182,993 shares during the period. Finally, Stempoint Capital LP increased its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 404.1% in the 4th quarter. Stempoint Capital LP now owns 208,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,645,000 after purchasing an additional 166,748 shares in the last quarter.

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.