Engineers Gate Manager LP Sells 118,987 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS

Key Points

• Engineers Gate Manager LP cut its Ionis Pharmaceuticals stake by 88.9% in the second quarter, selling 118,987 shares and retaining 14,840 shares worth approximately $1.18 million.
• Ionis shares opened at $44.44, near their 12-month low of $44.27 and well below the 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $55.97 and $68.40, respectively. Institutional investors own 93.86% of the stock.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with 17 Buy, four Hold and one Sell rating, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $90.80. Company insiders, including the CEO and an executive vice president, also sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Engineers Gate Manager LP reduced its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) by 88.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,840 shares of the company's stock after selling 118,987 shares during the quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP's holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,177,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth $41,000. Silvant Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth $43,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Archer Investment Corp purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $48,000. 93.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of IONS stock opened at $44.44 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.84 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 7.89, a quick ratio of 7.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. The firm's 50 day moving average is $55.97 and its 200 day moving average is $68.40. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $44.27 and a 12 month high of $86.74.

Insider Transactions at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP C. Bennett sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.46, for a total transaction of $1,281,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 75,018 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,411,038.28. This represents a 16.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.59, for a total value of $4,029,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 245,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,790,566.89. This represents a 16.92% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 156,317 shares of company stock valued at $12,656,566. 1.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $115.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $113.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $86.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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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