Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Given New $14.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) had its target price increased by Citigroup from $13.00 to $14.00 in a research report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

ARDX has been the topic of several other research reports. Leerink Partnrs reiterated an outperform rating on shares of Ardelyx in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an overweight rating on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Friday, January 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of Ardelyx from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on Ardelyx from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a strong-buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ardelyx currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $12.81.

Ardelyx Stock Performance

Shares of Ardelyx stock opened at $9.15 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a PE ratio of -32.68 and a beta of 0.87. Ardelyx has a one year low of $3.16 and a one year high of $10.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 4.36 and a current ratio of 4.53. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.87.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $46.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.40 million. Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 41.36% and a negative return on equity of 41.65%. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.13) EPS. Ardelyx’s revenue was up 303.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Ardelyx will post -0.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael Raab sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.40, for a total value of $192,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,310,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,389,971.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Elizabeth A. Grammer sold 86,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.73, for a total value of $664,780.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 312,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,419,435.89. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Michael Raab sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.40, for a total value of $192,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,310,933 shares in the company, valued at $8,389,971.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 178,820 shares of company stock worth $1,400,524 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ardelyx

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. HighMark Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ardelyx during the first quarter worth about $36,000. Willis Johnson & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Ardelyx in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. purchased a new position in Ardelyx in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Ardelyx in the third quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in Ardelyx in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. 58.92% of the stock is 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.