BTIG Research Initiates Coverage on Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX)

Research analysts at BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price target on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. BTIG Research’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 157.35% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Ardelyx from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $13.00 price objective (down previously from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Ardelyx to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target 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. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $5.50 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.44.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

NASDAQ ARDX opened at $5.44 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $5.37 and its 200-day moving average is $5.60. Ardelyx has a 12-month low of $4.32 and a 12-month high of $9.79. The company has a quick ratio of 4.31, a current ratio of 4.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.00 and a beta of 0.85.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.02. The company had revenue of $116.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.16 million. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 11.73% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. Sell-side analysts predict that Ardelyx will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Ardelyx

In other news, insider Laura A. Williams sold 4,941 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 303,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,707,378.48. The trade was a 1.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director David M. Mott acquired 213,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $4.67 per share, with a total value of $996,111.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,638,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,653,032.55. The trade was a 14.96 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders acquired 490,029 shares of company stock worth $2,377,766 and sold 141,408 shares worth $761,963. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARDX. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Ardelyx by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 24,387,941 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $123,587,000 after buying an additional 2,858,061 shares during the period. Two Seas Capital LP purchased a new stake in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $9,407,000. Rock Springs Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $7,421,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its position in Ardelyx by 9,499.8% during the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,468,668 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $7,446,000 after buying an additional 1,453,369 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $6,762,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

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.