Raymond James Financial Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 183,490 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $930,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.08% of Ardelyx at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Sheets Smith Investment Management purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. KBC Group NV boosted its position in Ardelyx by 101.8% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 13,706 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 6,915 shares during the period. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in Ardelyx by 42.7% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 16,486 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 4,933 shares during the period. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ARDX. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $5.50 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, February 21st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $11.00 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Ardelyx to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $14.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $10.39.

Ardelyx Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ ARDX traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $3.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,437,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,380,254. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $4.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 4.58 and a quick ratio of 4.31. Ardelyx, Inc. has a 1 year low of $3.50 and a 1 year high of $8.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $866.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.63 and a beta of 0.76.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.17) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.07). Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 11.73% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. The business had revenue of $74.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $79.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.11) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 61.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David M. Mott bought 381,377 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $4.22 per share, for a total transaction of $1,609,410.94. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,396,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,114,795.62. This represents a 18.92% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Justin A. Renz sold 5,171 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total transaction of $29,061.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 285,968 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,607,140.16. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 158,076 shares of company stock worth $777,555 over the last 90 days. 5.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ardelyx Company Profile

Ardelyx, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines to treat gastrointestinal and cardiorenal therapeutic areas in the United States and internationally. The company's lead product candidate is tenapanor for the treatment of patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation.