Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from “buy” to “strong-buy,” while broader analyst coverage remains positive with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and a $6.23 target price.
• IRWD shares opened at $4.29, with a market capitalization of approximately $708.9 million. The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.31, slightly below the $0.32 consensus, and revenue of $113.04 million versus $114.84 million expected.
• Several hedge funds increased their positions substantially, including Bank of America, Millennium Management, AQR Capital Management, Marshall Wace and Jane Street, although company insiders recently sold shares.

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

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $6.23.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of IRWD stock opened at $4.29 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $4.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.92. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $1.01 and a 1-year high of $5.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $708.88 million, a PE ratio of 5.57 and a beta of 0.20.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $113.04 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $114.84 million. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 58.38% and a net margin of 33.36%. Equities research analysts expect that Ironwood Pharmaceuticals will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

In other Ironwood Pharmaceuticals news, insider Ronald Silver sold 127,890 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.52, for a total transaction of $578,062.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 313,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,417,833.60. This trade represents a 28.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Julie Mchugh sold 21,571 shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.73, for a total transaction of $80,459.83. Following the transaction, the director owned 250,749 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $935,293.77. The trade was a 7.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 9.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 248.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 11,695,544 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $15,321,000 after buying an additional 8,337,672 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 186.6% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 6,359,682 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $9,349,000 after buying an additional 4,140,439 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 144.3% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,165,637 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $4,422,000 after buying an additional 3,641,762 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 616.3% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,993,557 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,875,000 after acquiring an additional 3,436,036 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 740.5% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 3,510,117 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $5,160,000 after acquiring an additional 3,092,475 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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