Nuveen LLC Makes New $16.74 Million Investment in Ardelyx, Inc. $ARDX

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new position in Ardelyx, purchasing 3,408,445 shares valued at approximately $16.7 million, representing about 1.42% of the company's stock.
• Ardelyx reported a quarterly revenue of $97.66 million, exceeding analyst estimates, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 23%.
• Analysts have mixed views on Ardelyx, with one "Strong Buy," eight "Buy," and one "Hold" rating, and the average target price set at $11.50.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,408,445 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $16,735,000. Nuveen LLC owned 1.42% of Ardelyx at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Ardelyx by 42.1% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 177,529 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $872,000 after purchasing an additional 52,584 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Ardelyx during the first quarter valued at about $144,000. Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its position in Ardelyx by 836.5% during the first quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 22,063 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 19,707 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,067,528 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $10,152,000 after acquiring an additional 32,393 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,997,234 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $73,636,000 after acquiring an additional 634,575 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.92% of the company's stock.

Ardelyx Price Performance

NASDAQ ARDX remained flat at $6.11 during trading on Friday. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,653,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,667,531. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 4.03 and a current ratio of 4.30. The firm's fifty day moving average is $4.58 and its 200 day moving average is $4.66. Ardelyx, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $3.21 and a fifty-two week high of $7.18.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.13) by $0.05. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 36.57% and a negative net margin of 14.60%.The firm had revenue of $97.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $82.69 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.07) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 23.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ardelyx

In other news, Director David M. Mott bought 200,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $3.63 per share, with a total value of $726,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,896,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,515,641.73. This trade represents a 7.42% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARDX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $12.00 price objective (up previously from $11.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. HC Wainwright initiated coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $10.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ardelyx from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on Ardelyx from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $11.50.

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.