Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Ardelyx shares hit a new 52-week low, trading as low as $3.18 and closing around $3.24, while remaining below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive: the stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $13.90, despite several target-price cuts and recent sell or strong-sell ratings.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS loss of $0.07, missing estimates, although revenue rose 34.3% year over year to $120.88 million. Insiders sold a combined 126,059 shares over the prior 90 days.

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $3.18 and last traded at $3.2350, with a volume of 300,422 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.28.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on ARDX shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Ardelyx from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $13.00 target price on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ardelyx from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $13.90.

Ardelyx Stock Down 1.4%

The company has a market capitalization of $806.13 million, a PE ratio of -14.70 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 3.34, a quick ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $3.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.09.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.02). Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 36.00% and a negative net margin of 12.35%. The company had revenue of $120.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $121.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.08) EPS. Ardelyx's revenue for the quarter was up 34.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.20 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider John E. Bishop sold 19,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.86, for a total value of $76,235.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 317,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,223,986.70. This trade represents a 5.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura A. Williams sold 10,739 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.86, for a total transaction of $41,452.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 367,456 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,418,380.16. This trade represents a 2.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 126,059 shares of company stock worth $486,588 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 5.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Krensavage Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Ardelyx by 6.9% during the second quarter. Krensavage Asset Management LLC now owns 534,523 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,726,000 after acquiring an additional 34,523 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ardelyx by 30.0% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 23,724 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 5,476 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in Ardelyx by 2.6% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 715,262 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,648,000 after acquiring an additional 17,978 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in Ardelyx by 8.2% in the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 240,796 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,228,000 after acquiring an additional 18,264 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Ardelyx by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 486,412 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,481,000 after purchasing an additional 45,738 shares in the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ardelyx Company Profile

Ardelyx, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for gastrointestinal and cardiorenal conditions. The company's products are designed to act locally in the gastrointestinal tract to address diseases involving phosphate, sodium, and other electrolytes.

Ardelyx's primary products include XPHOZAH (tenapanor), an oral treatment approved in the United States to reduce intestinal phosphate absorption in adults with chronic kidney disease on dialysis who have hyperphosphatemia, and IBSRELA (tenapanor), an oral therapy approved for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with constipation in adults.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.