Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Price Target Increased to $55.00 by Analysts at Needham & Company LLC

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) had its price target lifted by Needham & Company LLC from $46.00 to $55.00 in a research report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on RYTM. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $79.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $49.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $55.83.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $49.05 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $42.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.51. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $17.34 and a 52 week high of $53.92.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported ($2.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.34) by ($0.01). Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 179.26% and a negative net margin of 297.91%. The firm had revenue of $26.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.92) EPS. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 126.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph Shulman sold 3,984 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.47, for a total transaction of $153,264.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 30 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,154.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold 19,765 shares of company stock worth $973,772 in the last three months. 5.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CWM LLC raised its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 62.6% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 91.5% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. American International Group Inc. raised its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 3.1% in the first quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 26,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,140,000 after buying an additional 781 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AJOVista LLC purchased a new stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000.

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.