Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS Shares Acquired by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 180,949 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,464 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.11% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals worth $14,347,446 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 17,961,299 shares of the company's stock worth $1,420,918,000 after acquiring an additional 5,238,571 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 19,941.6% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,321,345 shares of the company's stock valued at $104,532,000 after acquiring an additional 1,314,752 shares during the period. Baker BROS. Advisors LP grew its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 216.1% in the fourth quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP now owns 1,791,841 shares of the company's stock valued at $141,753,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225,043 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 199.7% in the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,417,916 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,427,000 after buying an additional 944,766 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $62,718,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company's stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 7.7%

Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $3.95 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $47.49. The stock had a trading volume of 3,582,803 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,490,963. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $58.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $69.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 7.73 and a current ratio of 7.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.89 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.71 and a beta of 0.42. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $47.11 and a 1-year high of $86.74.

Insider Transactions at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Eugene Schneider sold 26,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.05, for a total transaction of $2,107,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 77,114 shares in the company, valued at $6,250,089.70. This trade represents a 25.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Holly B. Kordasiewicz sold 362 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 22,096 shares in the company, valued at $1,862,692.80. The trade was a 1.61% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 156,317 shares of company stock valued at $12,656,566. 1.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on IONS shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $113.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $84.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $115.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued a "peer perform" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, July 16th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.80.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biotechnology company that discovers and develops medicines using antisense technology, which is designed to target RNA and influence the production of disease-related proteins. The company focuses on neurological, cardiovascular, metabolic and other serious diseases for which there remains a significant unmet medical need.

Ionis has developed several approved therapies, including SPINRAZA (nusinersen) for spinal muscular atrophy, QALSODY (tofersen) for a form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, TEGSEDI (inotersen) for hereditary transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis and WAYLIVRA (volanesorsen) for familial chylomicronemia syndrome in certain markets.

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