Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 20,080,000 shares, a decrease of 5.1% from the April 15th total of 21,160,000 shares. Approximately 13.0% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,480,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.5 days.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of IRWD opened at $6.48 on Friday. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $6.21 and a 12-month high of $15.70. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $8.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.46.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.20). Ironwood Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 28.45% and a negative net margin of 254.41%. The company had revenue of $74.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $105.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was down 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ironwood Pharmaceuticals will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $14.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Craig Hallum decreased their price target on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ironwood Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jon R. Duane acquired 6,920 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.70 per share, with a total value of $60,204.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 121,028 shares in the company, valued at $1,052,943.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Ironwood Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Sravan Kumar Emany acquired 10,684 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $9.38 per share, for a total transaction of $100,215.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 301,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,830,255.54. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jon R. Duane purchased 6,920 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $8.70 per share, with a total value of $60,204.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 121,028 shares in the company, valued at $1,052,943.60. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 13.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Old West Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC now owns 56,921 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $651,000 after buying an additional 761 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,160 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 822 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 68,745 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $786,000 after purchasing an additional 980 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 15,330 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $175,000 after acquiring an additional 1,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its position in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 120,245 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,047,000 after buying an additional 1,557 shares during the last quarter.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a healthcare company, focuses on the development and commercialization of gastrointestinal (GI) products. It markets linaclotide, a guanylate cyclase type-C (GC-C) agonist for the treatment of adults suffering from irritable bowel syndrome with constipation or chronic idiopathic constipation under the LINZESS name in the United States, Mexico, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and China, as well as under the CONSTELLA name in the Canada and European countries.