Ardelyx Independent Chairman of the Board Acquires 18% More Stock

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 Board of the company, who spent a stonking US$997k on stock at an average price of US$4.62. Aside from being a solid chunk in its own right, the deft move also saw their holding increase by some 18%.

Check out our latest analysis for Ardelyx

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Ardelyx

Notably, that recent purchase by David Mott is the biggest insider purchase of Ardelyx shares that we've seen in the last year. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, at around the current price, which is US$5.12. Of course they may have changed their mind. But this suggests they are optimistic. If someone buys shares at well below current prices, it's a good sign on balance, but keep in mind they may no longer see value. The good news for Ardelyx share holders is that an insider was buying at near the current price. David Mott was the only individual insider to buy shares in the last twelve months.

In total, Ardelyx insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: Most of them are flying under the radar).

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Insiders own 2.4% of Ardelyx shares, worth about US$29m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The Ardelyx Insider Transactions Indicate?

The recent insider purchase is heartening. On the other hand the transaction history, over the last year, isn't so positive. The more recent transactions are a positive, but Ardelyx insiders haven't shown the sustained enthusiasm that we look for, although they do own a decent number of shares, overall. In short they are likely aligned with shareholders. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Ardelyx. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 2 warning signs with Ardelyx and understanding these should be part of your investment process.

Of course Ardelyx may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality 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 of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.