Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $80.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other research firms also recently commented on RYTM. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 23rd. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $59.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.09.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ RYTM opened at $59.62 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of -13.77 and a beta of 2.16. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $57.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.08. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $35.17 and a one year high of $68.58.

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.73) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.80) by $0.07. The company had revenue of $33.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.52 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 230.07% and a negative return on equity of 367.36%. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 47.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.76) EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Pamela J. Cramer sold 4,688 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $304,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $877,500. The trade was a 25.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer Kayden Lee sold 66,861 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.33, for a total transaction of $4,434,890.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 972 shares in the company, valued at $64,472.76. The trade was a 98.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 84,830 shares of company stock valued at $5,622,000 in the last ninety days. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 14.3% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 191,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,878,000 after purchasing an additional 24,033 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 32.8% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 9,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $391,000 after acquiring an additional 2,352 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 83,063 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,411,000 after acquiring an additional 6,339 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 12.3% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 31,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,273,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 10.0% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 404,242 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,249,000 after purchasing an additional 36,725 shares during the period.

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.