HC Wainwright Brokers Boost Earnings Estimates for IONS

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) – Investment analysts at HC Wainwright lifted their Q4 2026 EPS estimates for Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, September 4th. HC Wainwright analyst M. Kapoor now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of ($1.01) for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of ($1.02). HC Wainwright has a “Buy” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for Ionis Pharmaceuticals’ current full-year earnings is ($3.57) per share. HC Wainwright also issued estimates for Ionis Pharmaceuticals’ Q1 2027 earnings at ($0.75) EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at ($0.69) EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $0.19 EPS and FY2027 earnings at ($1.25) EPS.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on IONS. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $106.00 to $89.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. BMO Capital Markets set a $54.00 price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.50.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

IONS stock opened at $56.71 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.14. The stock has a market cap of $9.42 billion, a PE ratio of -16.39 and a beta of 0.42. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $50.01 and a one year high of $86.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 7.89 and a quick ratio of 7.73.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Silvant Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, Director Michael Hayden acquired 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $51.60 per share, with a total value of $258,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 24,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,238,400. This trade represents a 26.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Holly Kordasiewicz sold 362 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.30, for a total transaction of $30,516.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,692.80. This represents a 1.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 225,163 shares of company stock worth $17,711,191 in the last ninety days. 1.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

More Ionis Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts maintain bullish ratings: HC Wainwright lowered its price target from $115 to $100 but retained a “buy” rating. Canaccord Genuity also cut its target from $95 to $85 while maintaining a “buy” rating. The revised targets still imply substantial upside, signaling that analysts view the selloff as potentially excessive. Benzinga analyst price target reports
• Neutral Sentiment: ZANVASTRO launch plans remain a potential catalyst: Ionis discussed the FDA approval and commercialization strategy for ZANVASTRO in Alexander disease. The program could provide a future growth opportunity, although investors are likely focused more immediately on the pelacarsen setback. Ionis discusses ZANVASTRO approval and launch strategy
• Negative Sentiment: Pelacarsen failed its Phase 3 primary endpoint: The cardiovascular outcomes study, conducted with partner Novartis, failed to show that pelacarsen reduced cardiovascular events. The result clouds the drug’s commercial prospects and removes a potentially significant value driver for Ionis, prompting the sharp decline in the shares. Ionis shares fall after pelacarsen trial misses endpoint
• Negative Sentiment: Broader biotech and market pressure added to the selling: Novartis’ sharp decline following the pelacarsen failure affected its biotech partners, including Ionis. Lower U.S. stock futures and concern about other cardiovascular drug programs, including Amgen’s olpasiran, further weakened sentiment across the sector. Novartis trial failures ripple across biotech partners

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.