Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-one analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $60.68.

Several brokerages have recently commented on IONS. Leerink Partnrs raised Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th.

Insider Activity at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Richard S. Geary sold 2,430 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $116,640.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,104,384. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Richard S. Geary sold 2,430 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total value of $116,640.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,104,384. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Joseph Klein III sold 12,000 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $600,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $817,300. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Algert Global LLC raised its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 149.2% in the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 75,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,591,000 after acquiring an additional 45,108 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 12.2% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 274,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,099,000 after purchasing an additional 29,783 shares in the last quarter. Great Point Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $15,728,000. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1,021.5% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 173,199 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,255,000 after purchasing an additional 157,756 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Logos Global Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth about $14,298,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $46.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.15, a quick ratio of 7.28 and a current ratio of 7.37. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $35.95 and a one year high of $54.44. The company has a market cap of $6.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.40 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a fifty day moving average of $46.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.13.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.45) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.92) by $0.47. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 44.90% and a negative return on equity of 109.65%. The firm had revenue of $225.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $152.35 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Ionis Pharmaceuticals will post -3.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc discovers and develops RNA-targeted therapeutics in the United States. The company offers SPINRAZA for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in pediatric and adult patients; TEGSEDI, an antisense injection for the treatment of polyneuropathy caused by hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis in adults; and WAYLIVRA, an antisense medicine for treatment for familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) and familial partial lipodystrophy.