Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Hold"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from “buy” to “hold,” and the broader analyst view now sits at a consensus “Hold” with an average price target of $6.23.
• The company reported mixed quarterly results: EPS of $0.24 missed estimates by a penny, but revenue of $106.51 million topped expectations of $92.11 million.
• Shares were up 1.2% to $4.22, while recent insider activity included Director Alexander J. Denner selling 6.73 million shares, reducing his ownership by 42.28%.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research cut Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $3.70 target price on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Citizens Jmp boosted their target price on Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $8.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $6.23.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.2%

NASDAQ:IRWD opened at $4.22 on Friday. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $0.53 and a 1 year high of $5.78. The stock has a market cap of $688.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.03 and a beta of 0.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $3.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.63.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.01). Ironwood Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 28.26% and a negative return on equity of 37.48%. The business had revenue of $106.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.11 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ironwood Pharmaceuticals will post 0.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Alexander J. Denner sold 6,730,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,188,635 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,025,336.75. This represents a 42.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 12.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Range Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $1,436,000. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 76.2% during the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 362,407 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $475,000 after purchasing an additional 156,763 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 84.7% during the fourth quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 571,613 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,926,000 after purchasing an additional 262,084 shares during the last quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 474.7% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 36,090 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $122,000 after purchasing an additional 29,810 shares during the last quarter.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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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