Why Wall Street’s Wrong for Loving Protagonist Therapeutics Stock

• Protagonist Therapeutics (PTGX) exhibits strong technical momentum, posting a 150% gain over the past 52 weeks.
• PTGX holds a 100% “Buy” technical opinion from Barchart.
• Despite bullish analyst sentiment and price targets up to $137, I remain cautious due to low price stability, high short interest, and erratic earnings predictions.
• I am choosing to invest elsewhere, as PTGX’s high valuation, low growth, and speculative profile outweigh its recent momentum.

Today’s Featured Stock

Valued at $7.88 billion, Protagonist Therapeutics (PTGX) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company. Its proprietary technology platform focuses on discovering and developing peptide-based new chemical entities to address significant unmet medical needs. 

What I’m Watching

I found today’s Chart of the Day by using Barchart’s powerful screening functions to sort for stocks with the highest technical buy signals; superior current momentum in both strength and direction, a Weighted Alpha above 50+, and a 60-month beta above 1.5. I then used Barchart’s Flipcharts feature to review the charts for consistent price appreciation. PTGX checks those boxes. The Trend Seeker issued a new “Buy” signal on June 11. Since then, the stock has gained 14.01%.

Barchart’s Technical Indicators for Protagonist Therapeutics

Editor’s Note: The technical indicators below are updated live during the session every 20 minutes and can therefore change each day as the market fluctuates. The indicator numbers shown below therefore may not match what you see live on the Barchart.com website when you read this report. These technical indicators form the Barchart Opinion on a particular stock.

Protagonist Therapeutics scored a 5-year high of $126.59 on June 29.

• Protagonist Therapeutics has a Weighted Alpha of +121.94.
• PTGX has a 100% “Buy” opinion from Barchart.
• The stock has gained 149.29% over the past 52 weeks.
• Protagonist Therapeutics has its Trend Seeker “Buy” signal intact.
• The stock recently traded at $125.17 with a 50-day moving average of $105.19.
• PTGX has made 13 new highs and gained 31.87% over the past month.
• 60-month beta of 1.85.
• Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 74.06.
• There’s a technical support level around $123.09.

Don’t Forget the Fundamentals

• $7.88 billion market capitalization.
• Analysts project revenue to decrease by 2.05% this year but increase again by 4.17% next year.
• Earnings are estimated to increase 303.58% this year but decrease by 116.41% next year.

Analyst and Investor Sentiment on Protagonist Therapeutics

• The Wall Street analysts followed by Barchart give the stock 12 “Strong Buy” and 2 “Hold” opinions with price targets between $100 and $137.
• Value Line rates the stock “Average” and comments it has low price stability and low earnings predictability
• CFRA’s MarketScope rates the stock a “Hold.”
• Morningstar thinks the stock is 6% overvalued with a fair value of $115.
• 4,540 investors are following the stock on Seeking Alpha, which rates it a “Hold.” Their analysts note a high valuation, and low growth and profitability.
• Short interest is a high 12.02% of the float with 11.59 days to cover the float.

The Bottom Line on Protagonist Therapeutics

I think the Wall Street analysts got this one wrong. I am an investor, not a day trader or speculator. The short sellers are betting against this stock and its low price stability and erratic earnings predictability give me caution. Despite its recent momentum, I’m investing my money elsewhere.

Additional disclosure: The Barchart Chart of the Day highlights stocks that are experiencing exceptional current price appreciation. They are not intended to be buy recommendations as these stocks are extremely volatile and speculative. Should you decide to add one of these stocks to your investment portfolio it is highly suggested you follow a predetermined diversification and moving stop loss discipline that is consistent with your personal investment risk tolerance.