Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) Upgraded to Hold at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) to a hold rating in a research note released on Friday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on IRWD. Zacks Research lowered Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ironwood Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $6.23.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:IRWD opened at $4.13 on Friday. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $1.26 and a 52 week high of $5.78. The firm has a market cap of $682.44 million, a PE ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 0.20. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $4.16 and its 200-day moving average is $3.92.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $113.04 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.84 million. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 33.36% and a negative return on equity of 58.38%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ironwood Pharmaceuticals will post 1.1 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ronald Silver sold 127,890 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.52, for a total value of $578,062.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 313,680 shares in the company, valued at $1,417,833.60. The trade was a 28.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 9.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth approximately $40,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth approximately $47,000. Bull Harbor Capital LLC bought a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth approximately $65,000.

About Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a gastrointestinal-focused pharmaceutical company headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. The company discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines for gastrointestinal diseases and other disorders where significant unmet medical needs remain.

Ironwood’s primary marketed product is LINZESS (linaclotide), an oral medication used to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation and chronic idiopathic constipation. The product was approved by the U.S.