Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) had its price objective raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $45.00 to $48.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on IONS. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $45.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Guggenheim dropped their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.83.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of IONS stock opened at $35.62 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.91. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $23.95 and a one year high of $52.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.67 billion, a PE ratio of -11.72 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 8.47 and a quick ratio of 8.82.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported ($0.93) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.07) by $0.14. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 100.05% and a negative net margin of 64.25%. The business had revenue of $132.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $144.31 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.98) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Michael R. Hayden bought 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $31.86 per share, with a total value of $477,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 50,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,599,977.34. This trade represents a 42.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 160.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 949 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 183.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $60,000. 93.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.