Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $13.80.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, October 31st. BTIG Research raised their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wedbush lowered Ardelyx from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

NASDAQ ARDX opened at $7.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 4.11 and a current ratio of 4.41. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $5.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -30.61 and a beta of 0.56. Ardelyx has a fifty-two week low of $3.21 and a fifty-two week high of $8.05.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $110.33 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $100.44 million. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 36.91% and a negative net margin of 14.20%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ardelyx will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ardelyx

In other Ardelyx news, insider Laura A. Williams sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.98, for a total value of $349,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 361,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,523,709.74. This represents a 12.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Michael Raab sold 46,887 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.54, for a total transaction of $259,753.98. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,455,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,062,711.02. This trade represents a 3.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 114,868 shares of company stock valued at $708,369 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DCF Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Ardelyx during the second quarter worth $39,000. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Ardelyx by 147.0% during the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 10,253 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 6,102 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in Ardelyx during the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Ardelyx during the 2nd quarter valued at about $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

Ardelyx Company Profile

Ardelyx, Inc (NASDAQ: ARDX) is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing targeted small molecule drugs for cardio‐renal and gastrointestinal diseases. The company’s lead marketed product, tenapanor (sold under the brand name XPHOZAH in the United States), is approved for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients with chronic kidney disease on dialysis. Ardelyx’s proprietary approach targets epithelial transporters in the gastrointestinal tract, offering localized activity with limited systemic exposure.

Beyond tenapanor, Ardelyx’s development pipeline includes treatments designed to address other complications in kidney disease and related metabolic disorders.