Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Hits New 1-Year Low on Disappointing Earnings

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $4.02 and last traded at $4.39, with a volume of 2046815 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.47.

The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.17) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $74.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $79.40 million. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 24.87% and a negative net margin of 11.73%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 61.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.11) earnings per share.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARDX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BTIG Research began coverage on Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $14.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James lowered shares of Ardelyx from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $11.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Ardelyx from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $10.39.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David M. Mott acquired 381,377 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $4.22 per share, with a total value of $1,609,410.94. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,396,871 shares in the company, valued at $10,114,795.62. The trade was a 18.92 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Justin A. Renz sold 5,171 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total transaction of $29,061.02. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 285,968 shares in the company, valued at $1,607,140.16. The trade was a 1.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 158,076 shares of company stock worth $777,555 in the last 90 days. 5.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Ardelyx in the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ardelyx in the first quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx during the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ardelyx Stock Down 6.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 4.31 and a current ratio of 4.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $881.65 million, a P/E ratio of -23.09 and a beta of 0.76. The business's fifty day moving average price is $4.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.22.

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.