Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Needham & Company LLC Analyst Says

Key Points

• Needham & Company LLC has increased its target price for Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $70.00, indicating a potential upside of 23.71% from the current stock price.
• Ionis Pharmaceuticals reported earnings of $0.70 per share, significantly surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.19, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 100.9%.
• A total of 39,568 shares have been sold by insiders over the last three months, reflecting a trend of insider selling amid positive market forecasts.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC from $55.00 to $70.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC's target price would suggest a potential upside of 23.71% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $43.00 price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $62.50.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:IONS traded up $13.94 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $56.58. 9,260,721 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,806,754. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $23.95 and a one year high of $57.29. 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 business's fifty day simple moving average is $42.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.02 billion, a PE ratio of -30.72 and a beta of 0.28.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Eugene Schneider sold 9,549 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.80, for a total transaction of $408,697.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 51,507 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,204,499.60. This trade represents a 15.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director B Lynne Parshall sold 5,000 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.93, for a total value of $209,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 86,344 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,620,403.92. The trade was a 5.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 39,568 shares of company stock valued at $1,705,296 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.71% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ionis Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IONS. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 231.8% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 740 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 517 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 45.6% in the 1st 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. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $62,000. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 151.3% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,872 shares of the company's stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 1,127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth $60,000. 93.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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.