Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $3.71 and last traded at $3.7150, with a volume of 312528 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.81.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 10th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $13.00 target price on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ardelyx from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Ardelyx from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.90.

Ardelyx Trading Down 2.5%

The firm has a market cap of $925.74 million, a P/E ratio of -16.85 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 3.15 and a current ratio of 3.34. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $4.84 and a 200-day moving average of $5.67.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by ($0.02). Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 36.00% and a negative net margin of 12.35%.The firm had revenue of $120.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $121.03 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.08) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 34.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ardelyx

In related news, CEO Michael Raab sold 58,574 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.86, for a total transaction of $226,095.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,619,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,252,397.12. The trade was a 3.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John E. Bishop sold 19,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.86, for a total value of $76,235.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 317,095 shares in the company, valued at $1,223,986.70. This represents a 5.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 126,059 shares of company stock worth $486,588 in the last ninety days. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Ardelyx by 397.4% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 1,507,739 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $7,689,000 after purchasing an additional 1,204,602 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 240,796 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,228,000 after purchasing an additional 18,264 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 486,412 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,481,000 after buying an additional 45,738 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 7.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 100,550 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $509,000 after buying an additional 6,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Ardelyx in the second quarter worth approximately $11,034,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

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.