Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock Position Decreased by Sector Gamma AS

Sector Gamma AS cut its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 12.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 145,012 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,604 shares during the quarter. Ionis Pharmaceuticals accounts for 1.8% of Sector Gamma AS’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Sector Gamma AS’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $7,336,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. HealthInvest Partners AB bought a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $1,226,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,242,307 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,351,000 after buying an additional 43,087 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 75.2% in the third quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 183,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,317,000 after buying an additional 78,724 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $9,329,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 113.3% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 41,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,886,000 after buying an additional 22,078 shares during the period. 93.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.6 %

IONS stock traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $41.59. 556,093 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 856,032. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $43.28 and its 200-day moving average is $47.16. The company has a market cap of $6.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.25 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.18, a current ratio of 5.90 and a quick ratio of 5.83. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $34.32 and a 12 month high of $54.44.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.78) by $0.72. The company had revenue of $325.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $176.01 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 90.29% and a negative net margin of 46.32%. Ionis Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 113.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.37) EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Eric Swayze sold 10,773 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total transaction of $560,196.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,516 shares in the company, valued at $1,690,832. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Eric Swayze sold 10,773 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total transaction of $560,196.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,516 shares in the company, valued at $1,690,832. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Elizabeth L. Hougen sold 2,125 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.54, for a total transaction of $105,272.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 92,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,513.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 42,699 shares of company stock worth $2,104,091. Insiders own 2.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on IONS. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. StockNews.com raised Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.08.

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.