Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Stock Price Down 7.6% on Insider Selling

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)’s share price traded down 7.6% on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $5.25 and last traded at $5.29. 1,107,908 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 4,252,604 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.72.

Specifically, CEO Michael Raab sold 22,964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $129,057.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,085,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,101,943.10. The trade was a 2.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Justin A. Renz sold 5,171 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $29,061.02. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 285,968 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,607,140.16. The trade was a 1.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In other news, insider Laura A. Williams sold 4,941 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $27,768.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 303,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,707,378.48. This represents a 1.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $13.00 target price (down previously from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday. HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $5.50 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Ardelyx to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $9.93.

Ardelyx Stock Down 11.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -31.59 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 4.03, a quick ratio of 3.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.63.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 11.73% and a negative return on equity of 25.74%. The company had revenue of $116.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.16 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ARDX. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group bought a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 4th quarter worth $51,000. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Ardelyx

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.