Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Hits New 52-Week Low - What's Next?

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $4.15 and last traded at $4.17, with a volume of 429005 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $13.00 price objective (down from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, February 21st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $11.00 price objective on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, March 7th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $5.50 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler raised Ardelyx to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $10.61.

Ardelyx Stock Up 4.9 %

The stock has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.88 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.40. The company has a quick ratio of 4.31, a current ratio of 4.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Laura A. Williams sold 4,941 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $27,768.42. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 303,804 shares in the company, valued at $1,707,378.48. The trade was a 1.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Justin A. Renz sold 5,171 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.62, for a total value of $29,061.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 285,968 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,607,140.16. This represents a 1.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 158,076 shares of company stock valued at $823,804. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Ardelyx by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 24,387,941 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $123,587,000 after acquiring an additional 2,858,061 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ardelyx by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,362,659 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $72,819,000 after purchasing an additional 767,111 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Ardelyx by 1.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,141,850 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $83,657,000 after purchasing an additional 176,789 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ardelyx by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,509,730 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $27,941,000 after purchasing an additional 21,988 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Ardelyx by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,150,974 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $10,905,000 after buying an additional 50,441 shares during the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by 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.