Ionis Pharmaceuticals' (IONS) "Buy" Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC's price target suggests a potential upside of 115.05% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on IONS. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective 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. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, HC Wainwright assumed coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, April 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.72.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $1.19 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $27.90. 2,010,951 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,506,022. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.44 billion, a PE ratio of -9.18 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average of $31.22 and a 200 day moving average of $34.61. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $23.95 and a fifty-two week high of $52.34. The company has a quick ratio of 8.82, a current ratio of 8.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $227.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.12 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 30.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Ionis Pharmaceuticals will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Patrick R. O'neil sold 6,165 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.62, for a total value of $194,937.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,452 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,816,632.24. This trade represents a 9.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Eric Swayze sold 7,154 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.84, for a total transaction of $234,937.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,499,802.80. The trade was a 13.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 111,956 shares of company stock worth $3,608,439 in the last three months. 2.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 160.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 949 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 193.5% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 951 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 183.8% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $107,000. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.