Knott David M Jr Takes $1.24 Million Position in Ardelyx, Inc. $ARDX

Knott David M Jr purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 207,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,240,000. Ardelyx comprises about 0.7% of Knott David M Jr’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Ardelyx by 88.8% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,527,988 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $21,670,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600,080 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Ardelyx by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,912,339 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $69,449,000 after acquiring an additional 2,193,649 shares during the last quarter. J. Goldman & Co LP increased its stake in Ardelyx by 1,034.8% during the fourth quarter. J. Goldman & Co LP now owns 1,622,736 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,461,000 after acquiring an additional 1,479,736 shares during the last quarter. AIGH Capital Management LLC raised its position in Ardelyx by 479.3% in the fourth quarter. AIGH Capital Management LLC now owns 1,150,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,704,000 after purchasing an additional 951,500 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Ardelyx by 467.6% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,036,492 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,043,000 after purchasing an additional 853,892 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ARDX opened at $5.13 on Friday. Ardelyx, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $4.07 and a fifty-two week high of $8.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 3.28 and a current ratio of 3.49. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $5.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -22.30 and a beta of 0.61.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.15) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.02). Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 13.58% and a negative return on equity of 38.11%. The firm had revenue of $94.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.78 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.17) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.08 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Eric Duane Foster sold 7,998 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.27, for a total transaction of $50,147.46. Following the transaction, the insider owned 417,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,620,684.44. This represents a 1.88% 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 Mike Kelliher sold 7,248 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.27, for a total value of $45,444.96. Following the transaction, the insider owned 357,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,241,010.86. This trade represents a 1.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $154,066 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARDX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on Ardelyx in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $16.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ardelyx from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $15.73.

About Ardelyx

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.