NEW YORK, Jan 5, 2026, 06:09 ET — Premarket
Ironwood Pharmaceuticals shares rose about 1% in premarket trading on Monday after Citizens upgraded the gastrointestinal drugmaker, arguing that pricing pressure on Linzess has eased. Citizens analyst Jason Butler wrote that “LINZESS headwinds have passed” as the stock traded at $4.32 at 6:01 a.m. ET; Wells Fargo also lifted its price target to $5 from $3. The shares closed up 26.7% on Friday at $4.27. 1
The broker moves follow Ironwood’s 2026 outlook built on Linzess, its bowel-disorder franchise sold in a U.S. collaboration with AbbVie. Ironwood on Friday forecast 2026 total revenue of $450 million to $475 million and Linzess U.S. net sales of $1.125 billion to $1.175 billion, after cutting Linzess’s list price — the sticker price before rebates — by about 50% effective Jan. 1. 2
Ironwood said the reset is designed to reduce statutory rebates, including Medicaid’s inflation-based penalty, and support patient access. It also said it remains in a strategic alternatives review and is on track to start a confirmatory Phase 3 trial of apraglutide in the first half of 2026, with trial details expected in its fourth-quarter and full-year update later this quarter. 3
Butler upgraded Ironwood to Market Outperform from Market Perform and doubled his 12-month price target — his estimate of where the stock could trade — to $8. He said the company’s cash flow should be sufficient to service debt and fund the confirmatory apraglutide study, while absorbing a heavier spend profile as it prepares for a potential launch.
Wells Fargo kept an Equal Weight rating, saying it needs proof that apraglutide can deliver a clear benefit in another late-stage trial before it turns more constructive. The bank flagged pricing tailwinds for Linzess but warned the stock would likely remain hostage to pipeline execution.
Friday’s rally came with about 85 million shares traded, compared with roughly 2 million on Dec. 31, according to MarketScreener data. IRWD has swung from a one-year low near $0.53 to a high of $5.78, leaving the stock near the top of its recent range even after two years of sharp declines. 4
The debate now is how much of the Linzess tailwind shows up in net price, which reflects rebates and discounts paid back to insurers and government programs.
For traders, Friday’s $5.78 peak is the obvious resistance level; a break would mark a fresh one-year high. Support sits near $4.20, Friday’s low, with the $3.37 prior close as a deeper floor if the rally fades.
But a slower-than-expected payoff from the pricing reset, tougher payer dynamics, or another setback for apraglutide could reignite balance-sheet worries and blunt interest from any would-be buyer.
