Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS Position Lessened by Sovran Advisors LLC

Sovran Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 53.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 150,856 shares of the company’s stock after selling 171,057 shares during the period. Ionis Pharmaceuticals makes up about 0.9% of Sovran Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Sovran Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $9,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $215,000. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,340,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $17,790,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 66.1% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 862,593 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,431,000 after buying an additional 343,409 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1,669.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 312,297 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,430,000 after buying an additional 294,643 shares in the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Patrick R. O’neil sold 9,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.84, for a total transaction of $697,045.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 66,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,018,408.64. This represents a 12.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Eugene Schneider sold 9,302 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.59, for a total value of $703,138.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 63,890 shares in the company, valued at $4,829,445.10. This represents a 12.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 395,140 shares of company stock valued at $30,506,876 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.71% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.1%

NASDAQ IONS opened at $80.04 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.96 billion, a P/E ratio of -47.36 and a beta of 0.28. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.95 and a 12 month high of $86.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.78. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $79.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.14.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported ($0.80) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.15) by $0.35. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 44.26% and a negative net margin of 26.45%.The company had revenue of $156.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $131.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.95) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $86.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $89.00 target price (up previously from $85.00) on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.45.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Ionis Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: EU approval for Dawnzera (hereditary angioedema) expands Ionis’ commercial footprint after the prior U.S. clearance, increasing potential revenue and reinforcing the drug’s global launch narrative. This regulatory milestone supports longer-term sales upside and de-risks a marketed asset. Ionis’ Dawnzera Gets EU Approval for Hereditary Angioedema
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple insiders filed sales of Ionis shares today (large aggregate volumes from senior staff), which can be interpreted as profit-taking or signal reduced insider conviction and may pressure the stock in the near term. Key filings reported include sales by Brett Monia (44,034 shares), Elizabeth Hougen (12,922), Patrick O’Neil (9,191), Eugene Schneider (9,302), C. Frank Bennett (8,977), Brian Birchler (8,480), Shannon Devers (8,353), and two earlier smaller transactions. These are sizeable individual dispositions and bear watching for follow-on selling or the stated reasons in the filings (e.g., diversification, tax, option exercises).
  Brett Monia Sells 44,034 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  Elizabeth Hougen Sells 12,922 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  Patrick O’neil Sells 9,191 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  Eugene Schneider Sells 9,302 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  C Frank Bennett Sells 8,977 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  Brian Birchler Sells 8,480 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  Shannon Devers Sells 8,353 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  Kyle Jenne Sells 1,823 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock
  Holly Kordasiewicz Sells 4,141 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

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.