Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS) – Investment Analysts’ Weekly Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have changed their ratings and price targets for Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: IONS):

• 2/20/2025 – Ionis Pharmaceuticals had its “outperform” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada. They now have a $70.00 price target on the stock.
• 2/20/2025 – Ionis Pharmaceuticals had its price target lowered by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $60.00 to $45.00. They now have a “market perform” rating on the stock.
• 2/20/2025 – Ionis Pharmaceuticals had its price target lowered by analysts at Citigroup Inc. from $67.00 to $64.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
• 2/20/2025 – Ionis Pharmaceuticals had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Needham & Company LLC. They now have a $60.00 price target on the stock.
• 1/15/2025 – Ionis Pharmaceuticals had its “outperform” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada. They now have a $70.00 price target on the stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of IONS opened at $31.89 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a PE ratio of -10.49 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $33.52 and a 200-day moving average of $38.13. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a one year low of $30.23 and a one year high of $52.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 8.47 and a quick ratio of 8.82.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported ($0.66) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.12) by $0.46. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 100.05% and a negative net margin of 64.25%. The company had revenue of $227.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $140.97 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 30.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Eric Swayze sold 7,154 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.84, for a total transaction of $234,937.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 45,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,499,802.80. The trade was a 13.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael R. Hayden purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $36.22 per share, for a total transaction of $181,100.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 35,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,275,632.18. This trade represents a 16.55 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 111,816 shares of company stock worth $3,603,914 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 160.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 949 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 193.5% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 627 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $40,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 183.8% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $42,000. 93.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.