Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Hits New 1-Year High - What's Next?

Key Points

• Ionis Pharmaceuticals reached a new 52-week high of $72.15, closing at $71.77 with a trading volume of 584,412 shares.
• A slew of analyst upgrades has raised Ionis' target prices significantly, with Barclays setting a new target at $82.00 and Citigroup increasing theirs to $84.00.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $0.70 compared to consensus estimates of $0.19, and revenue growth of 100.9% year-over-year.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $72.15 and last traded at $71.77, with a volume of 584412 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.59.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upped their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $69.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $75.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Ionis Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $78.28.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 2.86 and a current ratio of 2.87. The company has a market capitalization of $11.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -38.83 and a beta of 0.33. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $55.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.26.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $270.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.45) earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 100.9% on a year-over-year basis. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Elizabeth L. Hougen sold 49,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.26, for a total transaction of $3,249,948.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 110,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,211,230. The trade was a 31.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP C Frank Bennett sold 33,909 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.62, for a total value of $2,055,563.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 101,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,157,173.40. This trade represents a 25.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 753,986 shares of company stock worth $45,921,435. 2.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWM LLC raised its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 18.7% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,435 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 44.2% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,341 shares of the company's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 11,411 shares of the company's stock valued at $451,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 45.6% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,382 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 4.8% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 9,989 shares of the company's stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.86% of the company's stock.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

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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