Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) Insider Sells $27,768.42 in Stock

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) insider Laura A. Williams sold 4,941 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total transaction of $27,768.42. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 303,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,707,378.48. This trade represents a 1.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

ARDX opened at $5.06 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.87, a current ratio of 4.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $5.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -31.59 and a beta of 0.85. Ardelyx, Inc. has a 12-month low of $4.32 and a 12-month high of $9.83.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.02. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 25.74% and a negative net margin of 11.73%. The company had revenue of $116.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.16 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 266.0% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 140,133 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $710,000 after purchasing an additional 101,841 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in Ardelyx during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Palisades Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Ardelyx by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Palisades Investment Partners LLC now owns 517,781 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,625,000 after acquiring an additional 34,432 shares during the period. Two Seas Capital LP acquired a new position in Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,407,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Ardelyx by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 578,256 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,932,000 after acquiring an additional 142,294 shares during the period. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARDX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $13.00 price objective (down from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Citigroup cut their price objective on Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Ardelyx to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on Ardelyx from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $9.93.

Ardelyx Company Profile

Ardelyx, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines to treat gastrointestinal and cardiorenal therapeutic areas in the United States and internationally. The company’s lead product candidate is tenapanor for the treatment of patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation.