Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Cantor Fitzgerald

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on ARDX. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. HC Wainwright reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $5.50 price objective on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, February 21st. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Tuesday. They set a "buy" rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $10.44.

Ardelyx Price Performance

NASDAQ ARDX opened at $5.41 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -33.81 and a beta of 0.85. 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 stock's fifty day moving average price is $5.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.60. Ardelyx has a 1 year low of $4.32 and a 1 year high of $9.83.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, hitting 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.16 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ardelyx will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ardelyx

In related news, CEO Michael Raab sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.26, for a total value of $131,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,150,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,051,025.10. The trade was a 2.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director David M. Mott bought 77,729 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $5.00 per share, for a total transaction of $388,645.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,015,494 shares in the company, valued at $10,077,470. This represents a 4.01 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 490,029 shares of company stock valued at $2,377,766 and have sold 141,408 shares valued at $761,963. 5.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardelyx

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth $121,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Ardelyx by 266.0% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 140,133 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $710,000 after buying an additional 101,841 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Palisades Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in Ardelyx by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Palisades Investment Partners LLC now owns 517,781 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,625,000 after acquiring an additional 34,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Seas Capital LP acquired a new position in Ardelyx during the 4th quarter worth approximately $9,407,000. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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