Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) has been assigned an average rating of “Buy” from the ten analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $11.50.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Ardelyx from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ardelyx from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $14.00 price objective (up from $13.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $12.00 price objective (up from $11.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th.

Ardelyx Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of NASDAQ ARDX opened at $5.81 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.03, a current ratio of 4.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Ardelyx has a 52 week low of $3.21 and a 52 week high of $7.18. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $4.39 and its 200 day moving average is $4.64. The company has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -25.26 and a beta of 0.68.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.05. The company had revenue of $97.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $82.69 million. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 14.60% and a negative return on equity of 36.57%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.07) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ardelyx will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ardelyx

In other Ardelyx news, Director David M. Mott bought 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $3.63 per share, for a total transaction of $726,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 2,896,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,515,641.73. This represents a 7.42% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ARDX. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 118.2% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 6,465,262 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,744,000 after buying an additional 3,501,782 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Ardelyx in the 1st quarter worth about $16,735,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in Ardelyx by 34.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 11,250,652 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $44,103,000 after purchasing an additional 2,866,843 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in Ardelyx by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 24,387,941 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $123,587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,858,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Ardelyx by 88.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,527,988 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $21,670,000 after purchasing an additional 2,600,080 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

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.