Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock Price Down 4.6% – Here’s Why

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) shares traded down 4.6% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $28.70 and last traded at $28.79. 337,449 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 1,446,750 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.17.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $45.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Ionis Pharmaceuticals to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $58.37.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.18 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 8.82, a current ratio of 8.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $32.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.63.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $227.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.97 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 30.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Patrick R. O’neil sold 1,207 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.35, for a total value of $39,046.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,819,525.75. The trade was a 2.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 38,843 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.65, for a total value of $1,229,380.95. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 180,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,718,616.95. The trade was a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 111,956 shares of company stock valued at $3,608,439 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Signaturefd LLC increased its position 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 buying an additional 584 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank increased its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 193.5% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 951 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 183.8% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. boosted its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 40.9% in the 3rd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $51,000. Institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

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.