Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IRWD) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

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

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of IRWD stock traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $1.92. The stock had a trading volume of 2,151,349 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,572,680. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $3.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.08. Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $1.59 and a one year high of $15.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $307.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -64.00 and a beta of 0.29.

Insider Transactions at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

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

Institutional Trading of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IRWD. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 286,990 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,271,000 after purchasing an additional 17,265 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming lifted its position in Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 37.8% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 41,858 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 11,479 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. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals by 28.9% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 50,204 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 11,267 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth about $106,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on IRWD shares. Craig Hallum dropped their target price on shares of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com lowered Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, JMP Securities decreased their target price on Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from $23.00 to $14.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $8.60.

About Ironwood Pharmaceuticals

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.