Michael Raab Sells 41,666 Shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) Stock

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) CEO Michael Raab sold 41,666 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.59, for a total value of $191,246.94. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,615,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,415,544.33. This trade represents a 2.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Michael Raab also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, March 7th, Michael Raab sold 41,668 shares of Ardelyx stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.36, for a total value of $223,340.48.
• On Thursday, February 20th, Michael Raab sold 22,964 shares of Ardelyx stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $129,057.68.
• On Friday, January 31st, Michael Raab sold 41,666 shares of Ardelyx stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.36, for a total value of $223,329.76.

Ardelyx Stock Up 3.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ARDX opened at $4.50 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of -28.13 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 4.58 and a quick ratio of 4.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $5.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.42. Ardelyx, Inc. has a 1 year low of $4.02 and a 1 year high of $9.33.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02. Ardelyx had a negative return on equity of 24.87% and a negative net margin of 11.73%. The firm had revenue of $116.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.16 million. Analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Ardelyx to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Ardelyx in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $11.00 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $13.00 price target (down previously from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Friday, February 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $10.61.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARDX. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position 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 buying an additional 2,858,061 shares during the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $9,407,000. Rock Springs Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx during the 4th quarter valued at $7,421,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Ardelyx by 9,499.8% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,453,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter worth about $6,762,000. Hedge funds and other 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.