Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Lowered to “Neutral” at Bank of America

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Bank of America from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report issued on Wednesday, Briefing.com reports. They presently have a $42.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $49.00. Bank of America‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 6.73% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on RYTM. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $42.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $46.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.40.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $39.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.30 and a beta of 1.94. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $15.50 and a 52-week high of $52.57. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.86.

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

Insider Activity at Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CEO David P. Meeker sold 45,494 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.22, for a total value of $1,784,274.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,848,008.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, CEO David P. Meeker sold 45,494 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.22, for a total value of $1,784,274.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,848,008.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Joseph Shulman sold 71,774 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,686 shares in the company, valued at $135,320.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 172,069 shares of company stock valued at $7,626,355. Corporate insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 95.7% in the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 713 shares during the period. AJOVista LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 253.1% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 91.5% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $69,000.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Company 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.