Aardvark Therapeutics’ (AARD) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at BTIG Research

BTIG Research reiterated their buy rating on shares of Aardvark Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AARD) in a research report report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. BTIG Research currently has a $26.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on AARD. William Blair initiated coverage on Aardvark Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, December 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Aardvark Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, December 29th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Aardvark Therapeutics in a report on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Aardvark Therapeutics from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer started coverage on Aardvark Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Aardvark Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.64.

Aardvark Therapeutics Trading Down 6.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AARD opened at $12.61 on Tuesday. Aardvark Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $4.88 and a 52 week high of $19.58. The company’s 50 day moving average is $13.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.16. The company has a market cap of $274.52 million and a PE ratio of -5.95.

Aardvark Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AARD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 13th. The company reported ($0.75) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.82) by $0.07.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aardvark Therapeutics

In other Aardvark Therapeutics news, CFO Nelson Sun bought 3,000 shares of Aardvark Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $14.40 per share, with a total value of $43,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 108,484 shares in the company, valued at $1,562,169.60. The trade was a 2.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Tien-Li Lee bought 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $14.48 per share, for a total transaction of $101,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,551,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,467,356.24. This represents a 0.45% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AARD. Citadel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Aardvark Therapeutics by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 1,359,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,073,000 after acquiring an additional 76,151 shares during the period. Laurion Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Aardvark Therapeutics by 6.1% during the third quarter. Laurion Capital Management LP now owns 1,049,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,951,000 after purchasing an additional 60,653 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Aardvark Therapeutics by 20.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 555,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,386,000 after purchasing an additional 94,744 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aardvark Therapeutics during the third quarter worth $4,248,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Aardvark Therapeutics by 53.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 297,865 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,910,000 after purchasing an additional 103,830 shares during the last quarter.

Trending Headlines about Aardvark Therapeutics

Here are the key news stories impacting Aardvark Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: IRB approval and FDA submission for an amended Phase 3 protocol lowering the minimum enrollment age from 10 to 7 — expands the addressable patient pool for ARD-101 and could accelerate enrollment and future revenue/timing optionality. GlobeNewswire: Aardvark Announces FDA Submission and IRB Approval
• Positive Sentiment: Company announcement / press coverage confirming expansion of the PWS Phase 3 trial to younger children — reinforces the clinical-catalyst narrative and could support higher valuation if enrollment and endpoints progress. TipRanks: Aardvark Expands PWS Phase 3 Trial
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reaffirmed a Buy rating with a $40 price target — a bullish analyst view implying substantial upside and likely supporting buying interest among growth/biotech investors. Benzinga: HC Wainwright rating
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG reiterated a Buy with a $26 price target — another institutional endorsement that increases visible upside from current levels and may attract momentum buyers. TickerReport: BTIG buy rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Market consensus rating described as an average “Moderate Buy” across brokerages — supportive but not unanimous conviction; indicates mixed analyst views beneath the highlighted bullish reports. AmericanBankingNews: Average Rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest report in the data feed shows anomalous/zero values (0 shares / NaN change), so there’s no clear short-interest pressure signal from that report at present.

Aardvark Therapeutics Company Profile

Aardvark Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specializing in the discovery and development of small-molecule modulators of the retinoic acid receptor–related orphan receptor gamma (RORγ). RORγ plays a central role in T-helper 17 (Th17) cell differentiation and inflammatory processes. By targeting this transcription factor, Aardvark aims to address a range of autoimmune and immune-mediated diseases.

The company’s lead programs consist of selective RORγ inverse agonists designed to suppress pathogenic Th17-driven responses in conditions such as psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease and other chronic inflammatory disorders.