Wedbush Reiterates “Outperform” Rating for Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX)

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating restated by stock analysts at Wedbush in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $11.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Wedbush’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 94.69% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ardelyx from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $10.00 target price on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Ardelyx from $14.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $10.69.

Ardelyx Price Performance

Ardelyx stock opened at $5.65 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.43. Ardelyx has a 12 month low of $3.16 and a 12 month high of $10.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 4.53 and a quick ratio of 4.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of -20.18 and a beta of 0.83.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.07) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $0.03. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 41.65% and a negative net margin of 41.36%. The company had revenue of $73.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.03 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.08) EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 228.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Ardelyx will post -0.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ardelyx

In other news, insider Robert Ora Felsch sold 207,988 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.81, for a total value of $1,832,374.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,947 shares in the company, valued at approximately $845,293.07. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Laura A. Williams sold 145,000 shares of Ardelyx stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.12, for a total transaction of $1,032,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 322,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,293,722.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Robert Ora Felsch sold 207,988 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.81, for a total value of $1,832,374.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 95,947 shares in the company, valued at $845,293.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 494,170 shares of company stock worth $3,752,676 in the last ninety days. 5.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 1,026.3% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,548 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 3,233 shares in the last quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ardelyx in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ardelyx in the fourth quarter worth $63,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Ardelyx during the first quarter worth $64,000. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new position in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $74,000. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.