Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS Position Raised by Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB

Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB grew its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 70.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 310,000 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 128,000 shares during the quarter. Ionis Pharmaceuticals comprises about 2.2% of Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB owned about 0.19% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals worth $20,280,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 253.3% in the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,800,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $150,138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,724,400 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,891,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,245,000 after buying an additional 48,141 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 190.3% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,372,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $89,771,000 after buying an additional 899,476 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 8.6% during the second quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 1,160,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,869,000 after buying an additional 91,746 shares during the period. Finally, Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 150.8% during the third quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 890,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,229,000 after buying an additional 535,110 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Ionis Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Broker upgrades and higher price targets are supporting upside sentiment — multiple firms recently raised ratings/targets (examples include Leerink and H.C. Wainwright), which can attract buyers and underpin the stock. Leerink Raises PT HC Wainwright Buy
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst raised Q1 EPS estimates for Ionis, which narrows short‑term earnings uncertainty and could support a re-rating if results confirm the revision. Q1 EPS Estimate Boosted
• Neutral Sentiment: Peer data flow — Biogen is presenting new SMA data this week. Positive competitor readouts can be a headwind for Ionis’ SMA-related programs or, alternatively, validate the market; implications are mixed for Ionis’ pipeline valuation. Biogen SMA Data
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling by senior executives and a director is weighing on sentiment — EVP C. Frank Bennett sold ~85,089 shares, Director Allene Diaz sold ~54,878 shares and EVP Shannon Devers sold ~20,106 shares in early March; those large, concentrated disposals (multi‑million dollar amounts) often trigger investor concern about management conviction. Insider Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Fundamental headwinds remain — the most recent quarter missed EPS expectations (despite a revenue beat) and the company still projects negative full‑year earnings, keeping profitability and cash‑flow concerns front of mind for investors. Recent Earnings Recap

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $74.04 on Friday. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $23.95 and a fifty-two week high of $86.74. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $81.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76, a current ratio of 3.83 and a quick ratio of 3.81. The company has a market cap of $12.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -30.34 and a beta of 0.31.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($1.41) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.23) by ($0.18). Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 40.36% and a negative return on equity of 68.82%. The firm had revenue of $203.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $156.07 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.66) EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IONS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP C Frank Bennett sold 85,089 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.23, for a total value of $6,741,601.47. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 80,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,382,293.42. This represents a 51.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eric Swayze sold 15,642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.76, for a total value of $1,278,889.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 32,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,624,904.80. The trade was a 32.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 596,652 shares of company stock valued at $48,059,821. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of RNA-targeted therapies designed to modulate gene expression. The company’s proprietary antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) technology enables the selective binding of short synthetic strands of nucleic acids to messenger RNA (mRNA), thereby inhibiting or altering the production of disease-causing proteins. Ionis’ pipeline spans a range of therapeutic areas, including neurological disorders, cardiovascular conditions, metabolic diseases and rare genetic disorders.

Since its founding in 1989 by Dr.