Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $15.7273.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ardelyx from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH initiated coverage on Ardelyx in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $16.00 target price for the company.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ardelyx news, insider Eric Duane Foster sold 7,998 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.27, for a total value of $50,147.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 417,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,620,684.44. This trade represents a 1.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Mike Kelliher sold 7,248 shares of Ardelyx stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.27, for a total transaction of $45,444.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 357,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,241,010.86. This trade represents a 1.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $154,066 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARDX. First Horizon Corp increased its stake in Ardelyx by 120.4% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 7,906 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 4,319 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 3rd quarter valued at $57,000. Krilogy Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 1st quarter valued at $70,000. Finally, PVG Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 1st quarter valued at $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

Ardelyx Stock Up 0.4%

NASDAQ ARDX opened at $5.16 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.28, a current ratio of 3.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Ardelyx has a 52 week low of $4.07 and a 52 week high of $8.40. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $5.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -22.43 and a beta of 0.61.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $94.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.78 million. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 13.58% and a negative return on equity of 38.11%. Ardelyx’s quarterly revenue was up 27.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.17) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ardelyx will post -0.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Ardelyx Company Profile

Ardelyx, Inc (NASDAQ: ARDX) is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing targeted small molecule drugs for cardio‐renal and gastrointestinal diseases. The company’s lead marketed product, tenapanor (sold under the brand name XPHOZAH in the United States), is approved for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients with chronic kidney disease on dialysis. Ardelyx’s proprietary approach targets epithelial transporters in the gastrointestinal tract, offering localized activity with limited systemic exposure.

Beyond tenapanor, Ardelyx’s development pipeline includes treatments designed to address other complications in kidney disease and related metabolic disorders.