Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Reaches New 52-Week Low - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Ionis Pharmaceuticals shares hit a new 52-week low, falling to $41.76 from a previous close of $43.52. The stock remains well below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $49.02 and $66.82, respectively.
• Despite the decline, Wall Street’s consensus remains favorable: 19 analysts rate the stock a Buy, three rate it Hold, and one rates it Sell. The average price target is $89.48, although several firms recently lowered their targets.
• Institutional investors own 93.86% of Ionis shares, with several funds increasing or initiating positions. An executive also sold shares to cover tax obligations related to vested equity awards.

Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $41.76 and last traded at $41.9550, with a volume of 380,667 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $43.52.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on IONS. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.48.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.95 billion, a PE ratio of -12.09 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 7.89 and a quick ratio of 7.73.

Insider Activity at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Shannon Devers sold 1,357 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.54, for a total transaction of $59,083.78. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,811 shares in the company, valued at approximately $775,490.94. The trade was a 7.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 1.81% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 199.7% during the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,417,916 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,427,000 after purchasing an additional 944,766 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment grew its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 7.5% during the first quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 824,540 shares of the company's stock valued at $61,915,000 after acquiring an additional 57,651 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth $62,718,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth about $54,253,000. Finally, Eversept Partners LP lifted its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 17.4% during the first quarter. Eversept Partners LP now owns 632,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,464,000 after purchasing an additional 93,882 shares during the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing medicines using antisense technology. Its platform is designed to selectively target RNA and regulate the production of disease-related proteins. The company develops therapies for neurological, cardiovascular and metabolic, and rare diseases.

Ionis has developed and commercialized medicines both independently and through collaborations with larger pharmaceutical companies. Its marketed or partnered products include Spinraza (nusinersen) for spinal muscular atrophy, Tegsedi (inotersen) and Wainua (eplontersen) for hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis, and Tryngolza (olezarsen) for familial chylomicronemia syndrome.

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