Needham & Company LLC Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Stock

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) had its target price hoisted by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC from $55.00 to $64.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 13.78% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on RYTM. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, October 25th. JMP Securities started coverage on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $64.00 target price for the company. Bank of America increased their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, October 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.33.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of RYTM stock opened at $56.25 on Wednesday. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $23.83 and a 1-year high of $56.58. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.34. The firm has a market cap of $3.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.90 and a beta of 2.09.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.55) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.71) by $0.16. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 254.88% and a negative return on equity of 221.65%. The firm had revenue of $29.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.79 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.82) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 51.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, Director Lynn A. Tetrault sold 4,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total value of $215,043.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $150,030. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Jennifer L. Good sold 31,751 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.40, for a total value of $1,663,752.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $157,200. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lynn A. Tetrault sold 4,300 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total value of $215,043.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $150,030. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 109,857 shares of company stock worth $5,325,446 in the last three months. 5.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Perceptive Advisors LLC increased its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 3,446,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,517,000 after buying an additional 178,000 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,304,146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,169,000 after acquiring an additional 77,208 shares during the period. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. raised its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 8.3% during the second quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. now owns 2,371,304 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,366,000 after purchasing an additional 181,125 shares in the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 38.2% in the second quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 1,182,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,548,000 after purchasing an additional 326,865 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 32.4% during the 2nd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 967,243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,715,000 after purchasing an additional 236,600 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.