Key Points
- Ionis director Michael Hayden bought 5,000 shares at an average price of $29.64 for $148,200, increasing his holdings to 27,000 shares.
- The company reported quarterly adjusted loss of $0.66 per share, narrower than analysts’ expected $1.23 loss, while revenue of $242.72 million beat estimates and rose 54.8% year over year.
- Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, but several recently lowered their price targets; the average target is $75.71.
Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) Director Michael Hayden purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $29.64 per share, for a total transaction of $148,200.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 27,000 shares in the company, valued at $800,280. This represents a 22.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.
Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 6.4%
IONS stock traded up $1.75 during trading on Friday, hitting $29.06. 5,945,342 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,386,260. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.25 and a 1 year high of $86.74. The firm's 50 day moving average is $43.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.57. The stock has a market cap of $4.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.75 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42, a current ratio of 5.43 and a quick ratio of 7.73.
Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 9th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.23) by $0.57. The business had revenue of $242.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.17 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 56.98% and a negative return on equity of 120.62%. Ionis Pharmaceuticals's revenue was up 54.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.80) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.59 EPS for the current year.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals
A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 199.7% during the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,417,916 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,427,000 after acquiring an additional 944,766 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,944,020 shares of the company's stock valued at $87,249,000 after acquiring an additional 347,022 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $62,718,000. Groupama Asset Managment grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 7.5% in the first quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 824,540 shares of the company's stock worth $61,915,000 after acquiring an additional 57,651 shares during the period. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 79.6% in the third quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 1,341,315 shares of the company's stock worth $59,890,000 after acquiring an additional 594,349 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
IONS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $84.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 10th. Finally, HC Wainwright reduced their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 10th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ionis Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.71.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Ionis Pharmaceuticals
More Ionis Pharmaceuticals News
Investors following IONS have been watching these news items:
- Positive Sentiment: Two-year DAWNZERA data presented at the ACAAI meeting supported durable efficacy and disease control for hereditary angioedema, adding clinical evidence for the drug. Wells Fargo also rated Ionis a Buy. DAWNZERA long-term data Wells Fargo rating
- Negative Sentiment: Ionis reportedly cut its full-year TRYNGOLZA sales outlook by roughly half after third-quarter sales reached just $9.3 million. The sales shortfall prompted investor-law-firm investigations, creating additional legal and reputational overhang. Investor investigation notice Wolf Popper investigation
- Negative Sentiment: Several firms—including Morgan Stanley, Needham, HC Wainwright, Oppenheimer and Goldman Sachs—cut price expectations; a separate analyst downgrade was associated with a sharp recent decline in the shares. Artisan Partners also said its small-cap growth strategy exited Ionis following sequential Phase 3 setbacks. Morgan Stanley price target Artisan Partners exit
Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
Ionis Pharmaceuticals is a biotechnology company that discovers and develops RNA-targeted medicines, with a focus on antisense oligonucleotides. Its medicines are designed to act on RNA and change the production of proteins linked to disease. The company's research and development programs span neurological, cardiovascular, metabolic and rare diseases. Ionis has developed medicines that it commercializes itself and products advanced or marketed with pharmaceutical partners. Its medicines and partnered products include treatments for conditions such as spinal muscular atrophy and transthyretin amyloidosis.
Further Reading
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