Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts give Ironwood a consensus rating of “Hold” (1 sell, 3 hold, 2 buy, 1 strong buy) with an average 1-year target price of about $6.23.
• Ironwood missed its latest quarter—EPS of -$0.01 vs. $0.02 expected and revenue of $47.71M vs. $86.10M estimated—though analysts still project ~0.98 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Director Alexander J. Denner sold 6,730,800 shares at an average price of $3.05 (≈$20.53M), trimming his stake by ~42.3%; insiders collectively own 12.7% of the company.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the seven ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation, two have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $6.2333.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup upgraded Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Zacks Research cut Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wall Street Zen cut Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $3.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of IRWD stock opened at $4.42 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $720.73 million, a PE ratio of 34.00 and a beta of 0.17. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $0.53 and a 52-week high of $5.78. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $3.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.43.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.02 by ($0.03). Ironwood Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 8.11% and a negative return on equity of 13.72%. The company had revenue of $47.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.10 million. Analysts expect that Ironwood Pharmaceuticals will post 0.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

In other Ironwood Pharmaceuticals news, Director Alexander J. Denner sold 6,730,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.05, for a total transaction of $20,528,940.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 9,188,635 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,025,336.75. The trade was a 42.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 12.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Range Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,436,000. State of Wyoming boosted its stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 76.2% during the 3rd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 362,407 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $475,000 after acquiring an additional 156,763 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 84.7% during the 4th quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 571,613 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,926,000 after acquiring an additional 262,084 shares in the last quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 474.7% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 36,090 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 29,810 shares in the last quarter.

About Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a commercial‐stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines for gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. The company's flagship product is linaclotide, marketed under the brand name LINZESS in the United States for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) and chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC). Through a strategic collaboration with Allergan (now part of AbbVie), Ironwood also commercializes linaclotide in select ex-U.S.

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