Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) Receives $15.73 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $16.10.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ARDX. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH initiated coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $16.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Research lowered shares of Ardelyx from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Ardelyx from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th.

Ardelyx Trading Down 0.8%

ARDX stock opened at $4.87 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.17 and a beta of 0.70. Ardelyx has a twelve month low of $4.71 and a twelve month high of $8.40. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $5.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.09. The company has a quick ratio of 3.28, a current ratio of 3.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by ($0.02). Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 38.11% and a negative net margin of 13.58%.The firm had revenue of $120.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $121.03 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.08) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ardelyx will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ardelyx news, insider Eric Duane Foster sold 7,998 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.27, for a total value of $50,147.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 417,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,620,684.44. This trade represents a 1.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Mike Kelliher sold 7,248 shares of Ardelyx stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.27, for a total transaction of $45,444.96. Following the completion of the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $154,066 in the last three months. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 120.4% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 7,906 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 4,319 shares during the period. SCS Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ardelyx in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ardelyx during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Ardelyx during the second quarter valued at $61,000. Finally, PVG Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Ardelyx during the 1st quarter valued at about $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

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.