Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 4,298 Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RYTM) by 13.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,884 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,298 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 78.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 988 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $450,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 451.6% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 9,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $480,000 after acquiring an additional 7,505 shares during the last quarter.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.5 %

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $52.97 on Thursday. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $35.17 and a 12 month high of $68.58. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.48. The firm has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a PE ratio of -12.23 and a beta of 2.30.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RYTM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $78.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, HC Wainwright upped their target price on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer Kayden Lee sold 1,815 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.39, for a total transaction of $102,347.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,598 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $202,891.22. This represents a 33.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO David P. Meeker sold 9,896 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.22, for a total value of $566,249.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 201,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,517,298.82. The trade was a 4.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 32,787 shares of company stock worth $1,901,443. Corporate insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.