Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Price Target Lowered to $45.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) had its price target reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $47.00 to $45.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on IONS. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 20th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $60.00 to $45.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.44.

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Ionis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of IONS traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $31.30. 379,094 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,421,425. 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 has a 52-week low of $30.23 and a 52-week high of $52.34. The company has a market cap of $4.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.30 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.95.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.12) by $0.46. The company had revenue of $227.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $140.97 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 100.05% and a negative net margin of 64.25%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 30.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.12 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ionis Pharmaceuticals will post -3.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 38,843 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were 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 owns 180,683 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,718,616.95. This trade represents a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick R. O'neil sold 6,165 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.62, for a total transaction of $194,937.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,452 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,816,632.24. The trade was a 9.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 111,956 shares of company stock valued at $3,608,439 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.71% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 40.9% in the third quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,081 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 19,339 shares of the company's stock worth $676,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 10,292 shares of the company's stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 5,865 shares of the company's stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 21,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $763,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is owned by 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.