Protagonist Therapeutics’ Rusfertide: Promising Efficacy and Financial Upside Drive Buy Recommendation

Protagonist Therapeutics (PTGX – Research Report), the Healthcare sector company, was revisited by a Wall Street analyst yesterday. Analyst Julian Harrison from BTIG maintained a Buy rating on the stock and has a $82.00 price target.

Julian Harrison has given his Buy rating due to a combination of factors that highlight the potential of Protagonist Therapeutics’ rusfertide in treating polycythemia vera (PV). The recent data update from the ASCO 2025 conference reinforced rusfertide’s efficacy, showing significant improvements in key secondary endpoints such as the mean number of phlebotomies, hematocrit levels, and patient-reported outcomes like fatigue and symptom scores. These consistent results across various patient subgroups suggest that rusfertide could be effectively used throughout the PV treatment paradigm.
Furthermore, the absence of increased cancer risk and the favorable safety profile of rusfertide, as demonstrated in the study, add to its attractiveness. The potential financial upside for Protagonist Therapeutics is also significant, with the possibility of opting out of a profit-sharing agreement with Takeda, which could lead to substantial payments and royalties. These factors collectively underpin Harrison’s optimistic outlook and support his Buy recommendation for the stock.

In another report released yesterday, J.P. Morgan also reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a $66.00 price target.

PTGX’s price has also changed moderately for the past six months – from $43.260 to $50.150, which is a 15.93% increase.