Nuveen Asset Management LLC Sells 9,013,825 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) by 96.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 290,954 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,013,825 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.18% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals worth $10,172,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 222.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,927 shares of the company's stock valued at $836,000 after purchasing an additional 16,508 shares in the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 33,480 shares of the company's stock worth $1,170,000 after buying an additional 5,359 shares in the last quarter. abrdn plc raised its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 401,501 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,028,000 after purchasing an additional 98,227 shares in the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,617,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 61,619 shares of the company's stock worth $2,154,000 after purchasing an additional 2,613 shares during the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of IONS stock traded up $0.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $33.64. The stock had a trading volume of 1,654,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,568,891. The firm has a market cap of $5.35 billion, a PE ratio of -11.07 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a quick ratio of 8.82, a current ratio of 8.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $30.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.82. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a one year low of $23.95 and a one year high of $52.34.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last released its 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. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 100.05% and a negative net margin of 64.25%. The company had revenue of $132.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $144.31 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.98) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $45.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $56.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael R. Hayden acquired 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $31.86 per share, for a total transaction of $477,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 50,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,599,977.34. This trade represents a 42.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.