Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) EVP Sells $39,046.45 in Stock

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) EVP Patrick R. O’neil sold 1,207 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.35, for a total transaction of $39,046.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 56,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,819,525.75. This represents a 2.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of IONS opened at $31.76 on Thursday. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $30.23 and a 1 year high of $52.34. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.98. The company has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.45 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 8.82 and a current ratio of 8.47.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.12) by $0.46. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 100.05% and a negative net margin of 64.25%. The company had revenue of $227.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.12 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 30.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on IONS. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $45.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 160.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 584 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 193.5% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 951 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 183.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc discovers and develops RNA-targeted therapeutics in the United States. The company offers SPINRAZA for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in pediatric and adult patients; TEGSEDI, an antisense injection for the treatment of polyneuropathy caused by hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis in adults; and WAYLIVRA, an antisense medicine for treatment for familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) and familial partial lipodystrophy.