Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Trading Up 4%

Shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) were up 4% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $6.74 and last traded at $6.72. Approximately 1,192,480 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 5,967,526 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.46.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ARDX shares. SVB Leerink started coverage on Ardelyx in a report on Friday, April 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, January 12th. StockNews.com cut Ardelyx from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on Ardelyx from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ardelyx currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $12.69.

Ardelyx Trading Up 2.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 4.64 and a current ratio of 4.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.73.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $34.36 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.26 million. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 43.57% and a negative net margin of 53.08%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.06 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ardelyx news, CEO Michael Raab sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.06, for a total transaction of $52,950.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,310,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,255,186.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Ardelyx news, CEO Michael Raab sold 7,500 shares of Ardelyx stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.06, for a total transaction of $52,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,310,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,255,186.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Justin A. Renz sold 5,341 shares of Ardelyx stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.75, for a total transaction of $46,733.75. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 304,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,667,306.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 148,820 shares of company stock valued at $1,208,524. Insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 3rd quarter valued at $848,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Ardelyx by 37.1% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 57,425 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 15,554 shares in the last quarter. Willis Johnson & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the 3rd quarter worth $307,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Ardelyx by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 273,600 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,116,000 after acquiring an additional 136,800 shares in the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.