Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Sets New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $41.76 and last traded at $41.9550, with a volume of 380,667 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $43.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.48.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 3.8%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $49.02 and a 200 day moving average of $66.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 7.73 and a current ratio of 7.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.09 and a beta of 0.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Shannon Devers sold 1,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.54, for a total value of $59,083.78. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,811 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $775,490.94. This trade represents a 7.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Corporate insiders own 1.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in IONS. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $241,000. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $10,208,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 54.7% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 74,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,304,000 after purchasing an additional 26,167 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $400,000. Finally, Profund Advisors LLC increased its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 110.9% during the third quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 38,639 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,725,000 after purchasing an additional 20,318 shares during the last quarter. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing medicines using antisense technology. Its platform is designed to selectively target RNA and regulate the production of disease-related proteins. The company develops therapies for neurological, cardiovascular and metabolic, and rare diseases.

Ionis has developed and commercialized medicines both independently and through collaborations with larger pharmaceutical companies. Its marketed or partnered products include Spinraza (nusinersen) for spinal muscular atrophy, Tegsedi (inotersen) and Wainua (eplontersen) for hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis, and Tryngolza (olezarsen) for familial chylomicronemia syndrome.