Independent Chairman David Mott Just Bought 133% More Shares In Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX)

Those following along with Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) will no doubt be intrigued by the recent purchase of shares by David Mott, Independent Chairman of the company, who spent a stonking US$966k on stock at an average price of US$6.85. That purchase boosted their holding by 133%, which makes us wonder if the move was inspired by quietly confident deeply-felt optimism.

See our latest analysis for Ardelyx

Ardelyx Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent purchase by David Mott was the biggest purchase of Ardelyx shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that even when the share price was higher than US$6.39 (the recent price), an insider wanted to purchase shares. Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price.

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$998k for 145.71k shares. But insiders sold 25900 shares worth US$161k. Overall, Ardelyx insiders were net buyers during the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

Ardelyx is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 1.4% of Ardelyx shares, worth about US$7.8m, according to our data. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

So What Do The Ardelyx Insider Transactions Indicate?

It is good to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. But on the other hand, the company made a loss during the last year, which makes us a little cautious. On this analysis the only slight negative we see is the fairly low (overall) insider ownership; their transactions suggest that they are quite positive on Ardelyx stock. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. For example - Ardelyx has 2 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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