Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 672,974 Shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD - Free Report) by 87.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,382 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 672,974 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.06% of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals worth $136,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IRWD. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Simplicity Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. Xponance Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Boothbay Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

IRWD traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $0.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,394,569 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,422,585. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $0.53 and a 52 week high of $7.11. The company's 50-day moving average is $0.69 and its 200-day moving average is $1.42. The firm has a market cap of $132.63 million, a PE ratio of -4.10 and a beta of 0.30.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $0.70 price target (down from $8.00) on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Craig Hallum lowered Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $1.00 target price (down from $7.00) on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Leerink Partners reduced their price target 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ironwood Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $4.78.

About Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

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.