Propel Bio Management LLC Trims Stock Position in Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)

Propel Bio Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX - Free Report) by 11.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 950,947 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 120,000 shares during the period. Ardelyx accounts for approximately 4.8% of Propel Bio Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Propel Bio Management LLC owned about 0.40% of Ardelyx worth $4,821,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ARDX. Two Seas Capital LP bought a new position in Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $9,407,000. Rock Springs Capital Management LP bought a new position in Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $7,421,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Ardelyx by 5.6% during the fourth 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. Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in Ardelyx by 344.7% during the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 906,311 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $4,595,000 after purchasing an additional 702,487 shares during the period. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. bought a new position in Ardelyx during the fourth quarter worth about $3,296,000. Institutional investors own 58.92% of the company's stock.

Ardelyx Price Performance

ARDX traded up $0.10 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $5.45. 4,999,651 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,379,327. Ardelyx, Inc. has a twelve month low of $4.02 and a twelve month high of $9.33. The company has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.06 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 50 day moving average price of $5.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.27.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.02. The company had revenue of $116.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.16 million. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 11.73% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. Equities research analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ardelyx

In related news, Director David M. Mott purchased 77,729 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $5.00 per share, for a total transaction of $388,645.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,015,494 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,077,470. This represents a 4.01 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Raab sold 41,666 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.36, for a total transaction of $223,329.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,108,719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,942,733.84. This represents a 3.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 158,076 shares of company stock worth $823,804. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARDX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Ardelyx in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $15.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Ardelyx from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Piper Sandler upgraded Ardelyx to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $13.00 price target (down from $15.00) on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $11.00 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ardelyx presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $10.61.

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.