Analysts Set Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) Price Target at $87.05

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $86.45.

A number of brokerages have commented on IONS. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $43.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $70.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $86.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th.

More Ionis Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: EU approval for Dawnzera in hereditary angioedema expands Ionis’ commercial footprint after the drug already cleared the U.S. last August; this approval accelerates launch/market access opportunities in Europe and is the likely near-term catalyst supporting the stock’s move higher. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and technical backdrop is mixed but constructive: consensus remains a “Moderate Buy” with a ~ $87 consensus target, and the stock is trading above its 200‑day moving average (support) while sitting near the 50‑day — elevated intraday volume shows active positioning that could amplify moves around clinical/commercial milestones. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large, concentrated insider selling on Jan. 16 — including CEO Brett P. Monia (~44,034 shares) and multiple EVPs (individual sales in the ~8k–13k share range) totaling roughly ~117k shares — may pressure sentiment despite possible non-fundamental reasons (tax/diversification). Review the SEC disclosures and press reports for details. Read More. Read More.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Richard S. Geary sold 89,249 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.11, for a total transaction of $6,703,492.39. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 59,657 shares in the company, valued at $4,480,837.27. This trade represents a 59.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Shannon L. Devers sold 44,199 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.08, for a total transaction of $3,760,450.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,488,389.52. This represents a 71.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 391,163 shares of company stock valued at $30,183,387. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 198.4% in the third quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 3.0%

IONS stock opened at $81.79 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $13.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -48.40 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a current ratio of 2.79. The business’s 50-day moving average is $79.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.55. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $23.95 and a fifty-two week high of $86.15.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported ($0.80) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.15) by $0.35. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 26.45% and a negative return on equity of 44.26%. The firm had revenue of $156.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $131.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.95) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.