Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Price Target Increased to $14.00 by Analysts at Citigroup

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) had its price target upped by Citigroup from $13.00 to $14.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

ARDX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, April 5th. They issued an outperform rating and a $14.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com cut Ardelyx from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an outperform rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Wedbush boosted their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an overweight rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, January 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $12.81.

Ardelyx Stock Up 28.4 %

Shares of ARDX stock traded up $1.93 during trading on Friday, hitting $8.72. 24,971,221 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,158,287. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.79. Ardelyx has a twelve month low of $3.16 and a twelve month high of $10.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 4.64 and a current ratio of 4.88.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by $0.02. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 41.36% and a negative return on equity of 41.03%. The company had revenue of $46.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.13) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 303.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ardelyx will post -0.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Elizabeth A. Grammer sold 86,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.73, for a total value of $664,780.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 312,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,419,435.89. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Elizabeth A. Grammer sold 86,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.73, for a total value of $664,780.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 312,993 shares in the company, valued at $2,419,435.89. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider David P. Rosenbaum sold 15,344 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.18, for a total transaction of $140,857.92. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 384,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,525,138.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 178,820 shares of company stock valued at $1,400,524. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Ardelyx by 347.4% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 122,811 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $897,000 after acquiring an additional 95,361 shares in the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 66.7% in the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 44,754 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 17,903 shares in the last quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Ardelyx in the first quarter worth $64,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ardelyx by 37.2% during the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 438,827 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,203,000 after buying an additional 118,879 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.