Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $6.36, but opened at $5.70. Ardelyx shares last traded at $5.63, with a volume of 1,952,513 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup cut their price objective on Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Ardelyx to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Ardelyx from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $5.50 price objective on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ardelyx has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $9.42.

Ardelyx Trading Down 8.7 %

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $5.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.15 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 4.03 and a quick ratio of 3.87.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 28.82% and a negative return on equity of 46.60%. Equities analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David M. Mott bought 199,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $4.99 per share, with a total value of $993,010.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,937,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,669,447.35. This trade represents a 11.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Raab sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.26, for a total value of $131,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,150,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,051,025.10. This represents a 2.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 133,332 shares of company stock worth $710,576. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 24,387,941 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $123,587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,858,061 shares in the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,407,000. Rock Springs Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $7,421,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 9,499.8% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,468,668 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,446,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx in the fourth quarter valued at $6,762,000. 58.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.