Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RYTM) Rating 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 research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $42.00 price objective on the stock, down from their prior price objective of $49.00. Bank of America‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 6.73% from the stock’s previous close.

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

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $39.35 on Wednesday. The stock 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 1 year low of $15.50 and a 1 year high of $52.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $40.79 and a two-hundred day 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 for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.70). The firm had revenue of $24.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.38 million. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 238.50% and a negative return on equity of 96.02%. The company’s revenue was up 175.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.75) EPS. Research analysts expect that Rhythm Pharmaceuticals will post -4.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO David P. Meeker sold 45,494 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,848,008.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Rhythm Pharmaceuticals news, CEO David P. Meeker sold 45,494 shares of the business’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 transaction of $1,784,274.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 174,605 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,848,008.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph Shulman sold 18,235 shares of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.34, for a total value of $735,599.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,210.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 172,069 shares of company stock valued at $7,626,355 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rhythm Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RYTM. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,226,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,342,000 after buying an additional 212,370 shares during the last quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc grew its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 2,500,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,312,000 after buying an additional 250,000 shares during the period. Perceptive Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 465.6% in the 4th quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 2,154,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,024,000 after buying an additional 1,773,282 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 23.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 868,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,910,000 after buying an additional 166,940 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Rhythm Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 397,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,282,000 after buying an additional 12,937 shares during the period.

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.