Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Trading Up 7.9% – Here’s Why

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)’s stock price shot up 7.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $6.22 and last traded at $6.25. 1,314,370 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 4,156,478 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARDX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $5.50 price objective on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Ardelyx from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Ardelyx to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $9.42.

Ardelyx Stock Up 10.9 %

The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.40 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 3.87, a current ratio of 4.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ardelyx

In other news, CEO Michael Raab sold 31,980 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.79, for a total transaction of $153,184.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,175,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,630,094.15. The trade was a 2.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David M. Mott bought 213,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $4.67 per share, with a total value of $996,111.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,638,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,653,032.55. This represents a 14.96 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 177,938 shares of company stock valued at $924,239 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARDX. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 24,387,941 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $123,587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,858,061 shares in the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP bought a new stake in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,407,000. Rock Springs Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $7,421,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Ardelyx by 9,499.8% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,468,668 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,446,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $6,762,000. 58.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.