Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Shares Down 7.6% After Insider Selling

Shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) fell 7.6% on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $5.25 and last traded at $5.29. 1,107,908 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 4,252,604 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.72.

Specifically, CEO Michael Raab sold 22,964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $129,057.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,085,755 shares in the company, valued at $6,101,943.10. The trade was a 2.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Justin A. Renz sold 5,171 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $29,061.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 285,968 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,140.16. The trade was a 1.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In other Ardelyx news, insider Laura A. Williams sold 4,941 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $27,768.42. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,804 shares in the company, valued at $1,707,378.48. The trade was a 1.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on ARDX shares. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Ardelyx from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $5.50 price objective on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $13.00 price objective (down from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $9.93.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $5.30 and a 200 day moving average of $5.63. The company has a quick ratio of 3.87, a current ratio of 4.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a PE ratio of -31.59 and a beta of 0.85.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.02. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 25.74% and a negative net margin of 11.73%. The business had revenue of $116.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.16 million. Equities research analysts predict that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ardelyx

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARDX. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 266.0% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 140,133 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $710,000 after purchasing an additional 101,841 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Palisades Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Palisades Investment Partners LLC now owns 517,781 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,625,000 after purchasing an additional 34,432 shares in the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 4th quarter worth about $9,407,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 578,256 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,932,000 after purchasing an additional 142,294 shares in the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.