Swedbank AB Makes New $2.16 Million Investment in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS

Key Points

• Swedbank AB opened a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter, buying 27,253 shares worth about $2.16 million.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including EVP Shannon L. Devers and EVP Kyle Jenne, with total insider sales in the last quarter reaching $48.1 million.
• Analysts remain generally positive on IONS, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $99.35, while the company recently beat earnings and revenue expectations for the quarter.

Swedbank AB bought a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 27,253 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,156,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of IONS. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 198.4% in the third quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 376 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 620.2% in the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 713 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Shannon L. Devers sold 6,193 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.05, for a total transaction of $458,591.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,348 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,210,569.40. This represents a 27.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Kyle Jenne sold 4,902 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.17, for a total transaction of $368,483.34. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,782,506.21. This represents a 17.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 637,013 shares of company stock valued at $48,098,942 in the last quarter. Insiders own 2.71% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on IONS shares. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $87.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $99.35.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

IONS opened at $75.71 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.09, a current ratio of 4.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $74.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $77.42. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.00 and a twelve month high of $86.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.57 and a beta of 0.38.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.85) by $0.29. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 30.91% and a negative return on equity of 58.65%. The firm had revenue of $246.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $195.57 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.93) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 86.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

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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