65,000 Shares in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) Bought by Allostery Investments LP

Allostery Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 65,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,272,000. Ionis Pharmaceuticals accounts for 2.4% of Allostery Investments LP's portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in IONS. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 949 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 193.5% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 951 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 183.8% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $107,000. Finally, Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $205,000. 93.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 3.5 %

Shares of IONS stock traded up $1.13 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $32.99. 376,286 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,555,839. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.95 and a 52-week high of $52.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.86 and a beta of 0.15. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $30.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 8.47 and a quick ratio of 8.82.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported ($0.93) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.07) by $0.14. The business had revenue of $132.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $144.31 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 100.05% and a negative net margin of 64.25%. The company's revenue was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.98) EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IONS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright increased their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com upgraded Ionis Pharmaceuticals to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ionis Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michael R. Hayden acquired 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $31.86 per share, for a total transaction of $477,900.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 50,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,599,977.34. This represents a 42.59 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick R. O'neil sold 1,207 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.35, for a total value of $39,046.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 56,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,819,525.75. This trade represents a 2.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,027 shares of company stock valued at $62,863. Company insiders own 2.71% of the company's stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.