Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) EVP Elizabeth Hougen Sells 12,922 Shares

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) EVP Elizabeth Hougen sold 12,922 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.22, for a total value of $971,992.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 126,307 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,500,812.54. This trade represents a 9.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of IONS stock traded up $1.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $77.53. The stock had a trading volume of 4,894,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,492,706. The firm has a market cap of $12.56 billion, a PE ratio of -45.88 and a beta of 0.28. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $23.95 and a fifty-two week high of $86.15. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $78.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.78.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported ($0.80) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.15) by $0.35. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 44.26% and a negative net margin of 26.45%.The business had revenue of $156.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $131.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.95) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on IONS shares. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $59.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Barclays raised their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Leerink Partners boosted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.05.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Ionis Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst / media bullishness on olezarsen: A recent Seeking Alpha piece highlights an expected 2026 launch of olezarsen in SHTG and argues that approval/commercial rollout could drive a substantial revenue inflection for Ionis; the article notes strong recent momentum and positions olezarsen as the key upside catalyst. Ionis: Expected 2026 Launch Of Olezarsen In SHTG To Spur Leap In Revenue Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading and technicals: Intraday volume is elevated (~4.9M shares vs. a ~1.5M average), suggesting the market is actively reacting to the news flow; the stock is above its 200‑day moving average (support) but near the 50‑day average—momentum could depend on upcoming clinical/commercial milestones.
• Negative Sentiment: Large, concentrated insider selling: Multiple executives (including CEO Brett P. Monia and several EVPs) sold shares on Jan 16 totaling roughly 117K shares (~$8.8M) — CEO sale (~44K shares, ~$3.3M) and several EVP sales of ~8–13K shares each. These filings can be reviewed in the SEC disclosures, which may signal tax/diversification activity but can also weigh on sentiment.
  Bennett filing
  Birchler filing
  Devers filing
  Hougen filing
  Jenne filing
  Kordasiewicz filing
  Monia (CEO) filing
  O’neil filing
  Schneider filing
  Swayze filings

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of IONS. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 253.3% in the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,800,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $150,138,000 after acquiring an additional 2,724,400 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 7,219.3% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 958,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,727,000 after acquiring an additional 945,729 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 190.3% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,372,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,771,000 after buying an additional 899,476 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $41,223,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 230.4% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 878,155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,449,000 after purchasing an additional 612,362 shares during the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of RNA-targeted therapies designed to modulate gene expression. The company’s proprietary antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) technology enables the selective binding of short synthetic strands of nucleic acids to messenger RNA (mRNA), thereby inhibiting or altering the production of disease-causing proteins. Ionis’ pipeline spans a range of therapeutic areas, including neurological disorders, cardiovascular conditions, metabolic diseases and rare genetic disorders.

Since its founding in 1989 by Dr.