Analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a “market perform” rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 8.02% from the stock’s previous close.
A number of other equities analysts have also commented on IONS. Vetr lowered Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $37.67 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, April 3rd. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, April 26th. Piper Jaffray Companies set a $51.00 price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 10th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, May 17th. Finally, Leerink Swann restated an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price objective (down previously from $47.00) on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, May 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.38.
Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) traded up 1.32% during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $52.77. 1,061,511 shares of the company traded hands. The stock’s market capitalization is $6.54 billion. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $24.58 and a 52 week high of $60.01. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $52.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.75.
Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 9th. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $0.13. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 14.61% and a negative net margin of 4.80%. The firm had revenue of $110.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.52) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 199.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Ionis Pharmaceuticals will post ($0.15) earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
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In related news, SVP Patrick R. O’neil sold 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.75, for a total transaction of $31,687.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 10,299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $502,076.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc acquired 3,125,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.00 per share, for a total transaction of $25,000,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 28,884,540 shares in the company, valued at $231,076,320. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 55,029 shares of company stock worth $2,977,740. 1.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado increased its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% in the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 24,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,241,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Utah Retirement Systems increased its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% in the first quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 22,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $884,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Grandfield & Dodd LLC increased its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the first quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 12,119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 2.9% in the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 5,705 shares of the company’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. Finally, World Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% in the second quarter. World Asset Management Inc now owns 5,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. 88.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile
Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc is engaged in discovering and developing ribonucleic acid (RNA)-targeted therapeutics. The Company, using its drug discovery platform, has developed a pipeline of drugs for patients with unmet medical needs. The Company’s segments include Ionis Core and Akcea Therapeutics. In the Ionis Core segment, the Company is engaged in exploiting a drug discovery platform to generate a pipeline of drugs for the Company and its partners.
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