HC Wainwright Reaffirms “Neutral” Rating for Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX)

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating restated by equities researchers at HC Wainwright in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $5.50 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. HC Wainwright’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 9.78% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $9.25.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

NASDAQ ARDX opened at $5.01 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.65. The company has a quick ratio of 3.87, a current ratio of 4.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Ardelyx has a 12-month low of $4.32 and a 12-month high of $10.13. The firm has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.70 and a beta of 0.85.

Insider Transactions at Ardelyx

In related news, Director David M. Mott acquired 213,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $4.67 per share, for a total transaction of $996,111.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,638,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,653,032.55. This represents a 14.96 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Raab sold 41,666 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.31, for a total transaction of $221,246.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,129,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,997,921.12. This trade represents a 3.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 218,358 shares of company stock worth $1,189,516. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ardelyx

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ardelyx by 142.8% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,203,090 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $23,735,000 after acquiring an additional 1,883,995 shares in the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Ardelyx by 68.5% during the third quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 3,060,191 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $21,085,000 after acquiring an additional 1,243,606 shares in the last quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ardelyx by 11.2% during the third quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 7,413,049 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $51,076,000 after acquiring an additional 746,067 shares in the last quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Ardelyx during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,445,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its position in shares of Ardelyx by 375.9% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 460,689 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,414,000 after acquiring an additional 363,894 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.92% of the company’s stock.

About Ardelyx

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.