Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) EVP Sells $937,375.34 in Stock

Key Points

• Patrick O'neil, EVP of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, sold 13,441 shares of stock for approximately $937,375, reducing his position by nearly 20%.
• Ionis Pharmaceuticals reported a significant earnings surprise with an EPS of $0.70, beating estimates by $0.51 and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 100.9%.
• Several analysts have upgraded Ionis Pharmaceuticals, with new price targets ranging from $80 to $96, reflecting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) EVP Patrick O'neil sold 13,441 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.74, for a total value of $937,375.34. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 53,889 shares in the company, valued at $3,758,218.86. The trade was a 19.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of IONS stock traded up $1.02 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $69.96. 3,102,562 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,961,000. The stock's 50-day moving average is $53.36 and its 200-day moving average is $41.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 2.86. The stock has a market cap of $11.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -38.02 and a beta of 0.33. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $23.95 and a 52 week high of $71.87.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.51. The company had revenue of $452.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $270.90 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 45.29% and a negative net margin of 28.25%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 100.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.45) earnings per share. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IONS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $83.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $49.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $78.28.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Exome Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 121.0% during the first quarter. Exome Asset Management LLC now owns 135,616 shares of the company's stock worth $4,092,000 after purchasing an additional 74,249 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3,786.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 28,993 shares of the company's stock worth $961,000 after purchasing an additional 28,247 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 40.8% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 148,690 shares of the company's stock worth $4,486,000 after purchasing an additional 43,071 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 4.8% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 9,989 shares of the company's stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares during the period. Finally, Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth about $3,747,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.86% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.