Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) Stock Price Up 8.7% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Ironwood Pharmaceuticals shares rose 8.7% to about $4.06 in mid-day trading, although trading volume was 74% below the average.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive: MarketBeat reports a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $6.23, with recent upgrades to “Strong Buy” offset by a “Sell” rating.
• The company exceeded revenue expectations in its latest quarter but narrowly missed EPS estimates; meanwhile, insiders recently sold shares, including a 28.96% reduction in Ronald Silver’s holdings.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 8.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $4.09 and last traded at $4.0550. 839,537 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 3,268,846 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IRWD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, May 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $6.23.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 11.9%

The firm's fifty day moving average price is $3.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.97. The company has a market cap of $680.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.93 and a beta of 0.20.

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 39.65%. The business had revenue of $106.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.11 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post 1.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ronald Silver sold 127,890 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.52, for a total value of $578,062.80. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 313,680 shares in the company, valued at $1,417,833.60. The trade was a 28.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Julie Mchugh sold 21,571 shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.73, for a total value of $80,459.83. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 250,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $935,293.77. This represents a 7.92% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 9.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 19,295 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 3,406 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000.

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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