C Frank Bennett Sells 85,089 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) EVP C Frank Bennett sold 85,089 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.23, for a total transaction of $6,741,601.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 80,554 shares in the company, valued at $6,382,293.42. This represents a 51.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

C Frank Bennett also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, February 2nd, C Frank Bennett sold 85,089 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.93, for a total transaction of $7,056,430.77.
• On Friday, January 30th, C Frank Bennett sold 5,885 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.95, for a total transaction of $488,160.75.
• On Friday, January 30th, C Frank Bennett sold 5,885 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.95, for a total transaction of $488,160.75.
• On Friday, January 16th, C Frank Bennett sold 8,977 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.15, for a total value of $674,621.55.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of IONS stock traded down $4.29 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $75.16. The company had a trading volume of 2,969,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,316,031. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.95 and a 12-month high of $86.74. The company has a market capitalization of $12.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.80 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 3.81 and a current ratio of 3.83. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $81.29 and a 200-day moving average of $72.89.

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

Institutional Trading of Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 198.4% during the 3rd quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 231.8% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 740 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on IONS shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $86.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $87.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.00.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Leerink Partners raised its price target on IONS to $104, a bullish signal that can support the stock. Leerink Raises PT
• Positive Sentiment: H.C. Wainwright maintained a “Buy” rating and a $110 price target while updating EPS forecasts (mixed quarter-by-quarter changes but a modestly improved FY2026 view), which can underpin longer-term investor confidence. HC Wainwright Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: HC Wainwright published detailed EPS revisions for FY2026 and quarterly estimates (some quarters revised up, Q4 trimmed versus a prior view); the net impact is modestly positive for estimates but reflects continued negative EPS expectations for the year. HC Wainwright Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: EVP C. Frank Bennett sold 85,089 shares at an average ~$79.23 (≈$6.74M), cutting his stake by ~51%. Large insider selling can signal liquidity-taking or reduced insider conviction and often pressures the stock. Bennett SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Shannon L. Devers sold 20,106 shares at an average ~$79.40 (~$1.60M), reducing her position by ~47%, another notable insider exit. Devers SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Director Allene M. Diaz sold 54,878 shares at an average ~$79.35 (~$4.35M), leaving a very small residual holding (≈93.5% reduction), which is a material reduction from board-level ownership. Diaz SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Biogen announced upcoming presentations of new SMA data (high‑dose nusinersen, salanersen) — positive news for Biogen that could increase competitive pressure in SMA, an area relevant to Ionis’ pipeline. Biogen SMA Data

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.