Insider Selling: Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) CEO Sells $4,029,500.00 in Stock

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) CEO Brett Monia sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.59, for a total value of $4,029,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 245,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,790,566.89. The trade was a 16.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:IONS opened at $81.18 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 4.10, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.75. The company has a market capitalization of $13.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.22 and a beta of 0.37. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.37 and a 12 month high of $86.74. The business’s 50-day moving average is $75.03 and its 200 day moving average is $77.33.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.85) by $0.29. The company had revenue of $246.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $195.56 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 58.65% and a negative net margin of 30.91%.The firm’s revenue was up 86.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.93) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, April 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price target on the stock. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $122.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.90.

Key Ionis Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Ionis received FDA approval expanding TRYNGOLZA to treat severe hypertriglyceridemia, strengthening the drug’s commercial opportunity and making it the first approved therapy for the condition. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Ionis announced a licensing deal with Recordati for ex-U.S. rights to zilganersen in Alexander disease, which provides upfront and royalty potential while allowing Ionis to keep U.S. commercialization rights. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Leerink Partners raised its price target on Ionis, signaling continued analyst confidence in the company’s pipeline and commercial execution. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: HC Wainwright kept a Buy rating but lowered some 2027 EPS estimates, which is a mild headwind but not a major shift in the firm’s overall view. Article Title

Institutional Trading of Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IONS. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 41.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 17,961,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,420,918,000 after buying an additional 5,238,571 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,148,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $249,158,000 after acquiring an additional 82,560 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,987,840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,370,000 after acquiring an additional 258,155 shares during the period. Tweedy Browne Co LLC raised its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% in the third quarter. Tweedy Browne Co LLC now owns 2,901,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $189,798,000 after acquiring an additional 9,268 shares during the period. Finally, Baker BROS. Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 216.1% in the 4th quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP now owns 1,791,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,753,000 after acquiring an additional 1,225,043 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

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.