Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS Shares Sold by Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB

Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB lessened its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 48.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 158,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 151,500 shares during the quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $12,539,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $38,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $44,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

IONS opened at $73.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.09, a current ratio of 4.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.75. The company has a market cap of $12.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -35.40 and a beta of 0.37. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $34.78 and a 52-week high of $86.74. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $77.77.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.85) by $0.29. The business had revenue of $246.09 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $195.57 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 30.91% and a negative return on equity of 58.65%. The company’s revenue was up 86.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.93) earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IONS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, April 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.90.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Elizabeth L. Hougen sold 215,048 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.40, for a total value of $15,569,475.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 92,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,721,036.80. This trade represents a 69.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Spencer R. Berthelsen sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.67, for a total transaction of $605,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 156,013 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,805,503.71. This represents a 4.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 256,100 shares of company stock valued at $18,613,444. Insiders own 1.81% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Profile

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of RNA-targeted therapies designed to modulate gene expression. The company’s proprietary antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) technology enables the selective binding of short synthetic strands of nucleic acids to messenger RNA (mRNA), thereby inhibiting or altering the production of disease-causing proteins. Ionis’ pipeline spans a range of therapeutic areas, including neurological disorders, cardiovascular conditions, metabolic diseases and rare genetic disorders.

Since its founding in 1989 by Dr.