Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Here's Why

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $3.35 and last traded at $3.39, with a volume of 5114251 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.53.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. HC Wainwright restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $5.50 target price on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com lowered Ardelyx from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a "buy" rating and issued a $11.00 target price on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Raymond James lowered Ardelyx from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $11.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Ardelyx to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $10.39.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

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 company has a market capitalization of $811.07 million, a P/E ratio of -21.19 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a 50 day moving average of $4.78 and a 200-day moving average of $5.14.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.07). Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 11.73% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. The company had revenue of $74.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.11) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 61.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ardelyx

In other Ardelyx news, Director David M. Mott bought 381,377 shares of Ardelyx stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $4.22 per share, for a total transaction of $1,609,410.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,396,871 shares in the company, valued at $10,114,795.62. This represents a 18.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Michael Raab sold 22,964 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 value of $129,057.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,085,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,101,943.10. The trade was a 2.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 158,076 shares of company stock worth $777,555. 5.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ardelyx

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Ardelyx by 1.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 387,144 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,667,000 after buying an additional 6,093 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,362,659 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $72,819,000 after purchasing an additional 767,111 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 24.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 547,325 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,770,000 after purchasing an additional 109,285 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,035,135 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $10,318,000 after purchasing an additional 96,357 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 326,124 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,653,000 after purchasing an additional 6,070 shares in the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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