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

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ARDX. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Ardelyx by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 124,945 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $633,000 after purchasing an additional 10,514 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Ardelyx in the fourth quarter valued at about $930,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in Ardelyx in the fourth quarter valued at about $582,000. Natixis bought a new position in Ardelyx in the fourth quarter valued at about $475,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in Ardelyx by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 135,156 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $685,000 after purchasing an additional 10,213 shares during the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ardelyx

In related news, CEO Michael Raab sold 45,687 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.93, for a total transaction of $270,923.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,502,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,908,342.50. This trade represents a 2.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Eric Duane Foster sold 15,308 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.93, for a total value of $90,776.44. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 301,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,787,883.14. This represents a 4.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 80,134 shares of company stock valued at $475,195 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARDX has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group set a $12.00 target price on Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $12.00 price objective (up from $11.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Ardelyx from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ardelyx from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $14.00 price objective (up from $13.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ardelyx currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $11.50.

Ardelyx Trading Up 2.3%

NASDAQ ARDX traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $6.20. 1,791,448 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,681,761. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $4.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $4.67. Ardelyx, Inc. has a 1-year low of $3.21 and a 1-year high of $7.18. The firm has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -26.96 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 4.30, a quick ratio of 4.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

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 the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $97.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $82.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.07) earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.