Sovran Advisors LLC Makes New $5.62 Million Investment in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS)

Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 171,812 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,617,000. Ionis Pharmaceuticals accounts for 0.8% of Sovran Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Sovran Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 7.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,668,358 shares of the company's stock valued at $106,922,000 after purchasing an additional 183,814 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 967.2% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 141,917 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,961,000 after purchasing an additional 128,619 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 222.5% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,927 shares of the company's stock valued at $836,000 after purchasing an additional 16,508 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 8.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,443,020 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,807,000 after purchasing an additional 114,914 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 13.6% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 650,779 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,070,000 after purchasing an additional 77,909 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IONS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $62.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Elizabeth L. Hougen sold 8,870 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.81, for a total value of $291,024.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,885 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,539,706.85. This represents a 7.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 38,843 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.65, for a total transaction of $1,229,380.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 180,683 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,718,616.95. This trade represents a 17.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 110,609 shares of company stock worth $3,564,867. Company insiders own 2.71% of the company's stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

IONS traded up $0.69 during trading on Friday, hitting $31.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,445,661 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,559,299. The company has a quick ratio of 8.82, a current ratio of 8.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a one year low of $30.23 and a one year high of $52.34. The firm has a market cap of $4.90 billion, a PE ratio of -12.72 and a beta of 0.34. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $34.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.96.

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.