Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD) Short Interest Update

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,750,000 shares, an increase of 13.8% from the January 15th total of 9,450,000 shares. Approximately 6.9% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,880,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days.

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $0.09 on Monday, hitting $1.92. 2,151,349 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,572,680. The stock has a market capitalization of $307.26 million, a P/E ratio of -64.00 and a beta of 0.29. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $1.59 and a 52 week high of $15.65. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $4.08.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Michael Shetzline sold 41,269 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.76, for a total transaction of $72,633.44. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 554,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $975,052.32. This trade represents a 6.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Thomas A. Mccourt sold 139,064 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.76, for a total transaction of $244,752.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,160,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,042,715.84. The trade was a 10.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 192,381 shares of company stock valued at $338,591 in the last 90 days. 12.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. KBC Group NV increased its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 59.3% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,593 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 3,198 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC bought a new position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. purchased a new stake in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on IRWD shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. JMP Securities lowered their price target on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $23.00 to $14.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Craig Hallum lowered their price target on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $8.60.

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.