Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) EVP Sells $4,377,106.16 in Stock

Key Points

• Patrick O'neil, the Executive Vice President of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, sold 64,664 shares for over $4.37 million, resulting in a 53.09% reduction in his holdings.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings, with a revenue of $452 million and an EPS of $0.70, far exceeding analyst estimates of $0.19.
• Analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus on Ionis Pharmaceuticals with an average price target of $73.88, reflecting bullish sentiment in the market despite recent insider selling.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) EVP Patrick O'neil sold 64,664 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.69, for a total value of $4,377,106.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 57,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,867,129.70. This trade represents a 53.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of IONS traded up $2.60 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $68.40. 2,999,327 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,312,510. The company has a market cap of $10.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.17 and a beta of 0.33. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $23.95 and a fifty-two week high of $68.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 2.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm's fifty day moving average is $51.71 and its 200 day moving average is $40.33.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.51. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 45.29% and a negative net margin of 28.25%.The firm had revenue of $452.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $270.90 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.45) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 100.9% on a year-over-year basis. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IONS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $71.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $77.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $45.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, September 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $73.88.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 14.2% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,175,533 shares of the company's stock worth $488,016,000 after purchasing an additional 2,006,334 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 253.3% during the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,800,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $150,138,000 after buying an additional 2,724,400 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,891,095 shares of the company's stock valued at $114,245,000 after purchasing an additional 48,141 shares during the period. BVF Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at approximately $57,727,000. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment boosted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 8.6% in the second quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 1,160,957 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,869,000 after purchasing an additional 91,746 shares during the period. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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