Two Sigma Advisers LP Boosts Stake in Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)

Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Free Report) by 206.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 593,700 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 400,100 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned approximately 0.25% of Ardelyx worth $3,010,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its position in Ardelyx by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 73,950 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 2,200 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 154,625 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $788,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 463,100 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,348,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in Ardelyx by 42.7% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 16,486 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 4,933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Ardelyx by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 50,222 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 4,942 shares during the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on ARDX. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $11.00 price objective on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Ardelyx to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised Ardelyx to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given 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.com, Ardelyx has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $10.39.

Insider Activity at Ardelyx

In related news, insider Laura A. Williams sold 6,421 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.08, for a total value of $26,197.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 402,583 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,642,538.64. The trade was a 1.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Raab sold 41,668 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.36, for a total transaction of $223,340.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,635,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,764,339.68. This represents a 2.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 208,477 shares of company stock worth $932,254 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company's stock.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARDX traded down $0.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $3.72. 5,878,710 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,453,828. The company has a quick ratio of 4.31, a current ratio of 4.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $4.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $4.99. Ardelyx, Inc. has a 52-week low of $3.21 and a 52-week high of $8.06. The company has a market cap of $890.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.25 and a beta of 0.76.

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 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 firm had revenue of $74.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $79.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.11) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 61.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 EPS for the current year.

Ardelyx 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.