Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Increases Position

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 54.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 74,003 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,167 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $3,304,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $41,000. Silvant Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $43,000. Archer Investment Corp purchased a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $54.00 to $66.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.48.

Insider Transactions at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Shannon Devers sold 1,357 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.54, for a total transaction of $59,083.78. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 17,811 shares in the company, valued at $775,490.94. This represents a 7.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Company insiders own 1.81% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $39.42. 2,911,559 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,678,118. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.31 and a 52-week high of $86.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.39 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a fifty day moving average of $46.80 and a 200-day moving average of $65.88. The company has a current ratio of 7.89, a quick ratio of 7.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07.

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.