Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 68,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,435,000.
Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital World Investors raised its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 41.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 17,961,299 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,420,918,000 after purchasing an additional 5,238,571 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,148,849 shares of the company's stock valued at $249,158,000 after buying an additional 82,560 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,987,840 shares of the company's stock valued at $236,370,000 after buying an additional 258,155 shares during the period. Baker BROS. Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 216.1% during the 4th quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP now owns 1,791,841 shares of the company's stock valued at $141,753,000 after buying an additional 1,225,043 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,541,841 shares of the company's stock worth $121,975,000 after acquiring an additional 21,890 shares in the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of equities analysts have weighed in on IONS shares. Barclays decreased their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $115.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.15.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on IONS
Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance
Shares of IONS opened at $63.57 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.37 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 7.73, a current ratio of 7.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. The business's 50 day moving average is $63.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.77. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $41.71 and a 52-week high of $86.74.
Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported ($0.69) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.08) by $0.39. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 64.76% and a negative return on equity of 111.08%. The business had revenue of $267.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.70 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 40.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, Director Allene M. Diaz sold 10,111 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.42, for a total value of $863,681.62. Following the sale, the director owned 3,811 shares in the company, valued at approximately $325,535.62. This represents a 72.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP C Frank Bennett sold 5,536 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.58, for a total transaction of $462,698.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 75,018 shares in the company, valued at $6,270,004.44. The trade was a 6.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 233,163 shares of company stock worth $18,316,551. 1.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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