Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 9,941,673 Shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 84.7%, selling nearly 9.9 million shares, leaving it with about 1.79 million shares, valued at $2.63 million.
• Ironwood's quarterly earnings showed a loss of ($0.14) per share, missing estimates, with revenue at $41.14 million compared to a forecast of $67.02 million.
• Analysts' ratings for Ironwood Pharmaceuticals are mixed, with a consensus "Hold" rating and an average price target of $4.78, although some have recently downgraded their estimates significantly.

Pacer Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD - Free Report) by 84.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,789,098 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 9,941,673 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned approximately 1.11% of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals worth $2,630,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $57,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $59,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $68,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on IRWD. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $0.70 target price (down from $8.00) on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Craig Hallum lowered shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Citizens Jmp lowered shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Leerink Partners decreased their price objective on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $3.00 to $1.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $4.78.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.0%

NASDAQ:IRWD traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $0.77. The company had a trading volume of 1,107,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,195,990. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $0.53 and a 52 week high of $6.57. The firm has a market cap of $124.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.86 and a beta of 0.33. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $0.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.28.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.05) by ($0.09). Ironwood Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.87% and a negative net margin of 9.89%. The company had revenue of $41.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.02 million. On average, analysts forecast that Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post 0.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a healthcare company, focuses on the development and commercialization of gastrointestinal (GI) products. It markets linaclotide, a guanylate cyclase type-C (GC-C) agonist for the treatment of adults suffering from irritable bowel syndrome with constipation or chronic idiopathic constipation under the LINZESS name in the United States, Mexico, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and China, as well as under the CONSTELLA name in the Canada and European countries.