Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS Stock Position Lifted by Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB

Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB raised its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 70.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 310,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 128,000 shares during the quarter. Ionis Pharmaceuticals makes up 2.2% of Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB’s holdings, making the stock its 12th largest position. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $20,280,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of IONS. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,488 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 198.4% in the 3rd quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $25,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $27,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 44.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,341 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.5%

Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $74.04 on Friday. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.95 and a 12 month high of $86.74. The stock has a market cap of $12.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.34 and a beta of 0.31. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $81.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.33. The company has a quick ratio of 3.81, a current ratio of 3.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($1.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.23) by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $203.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $156.07 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 40.36% and a negative return on equity of 68.82%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.66) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Key Headlines Impacting Ionis Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: Broker upgrades and higher price targets are supporting upside sentiment — multiple firms recently raised ratings/targets (examples include Leerink and H.C. Wainwright), which can attract buyers and underpin the stock. Leerink Raises PT HC Wainwright Buy
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst raised Q1 EPS estimates for Ionis, which narrows short‑term earnings uncertainty and could support a re-rating if results confirm the revision. Q1 EPS Estimate Boosted
• Neutral Sentiment: Peer data flow — Biogen is presenting new SMA data this week. Positive competitor readouts can be a headwind for Ionis’ SMA-related programs or, alternatively, validate the market; implications are mixed for Ionis’ pipeline valuation. Biogen SMA Data
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling by senior executives and a director is weighing on sentiment — EVP C. Frank Bennett sold ~85,089 shares, Director Allene Diaz sold ~54,878 shares and EVP Shannon Devers sold ~20,106 shares in early March; those large, concentrated disposals (multi‑million dollar amounts) often trigger investor concern about management conviction. Insider Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Fundamental headwinds remain — the most recent quarter missed EPS expectations (despite a revenue beat) and the company still projects negative full‑year earnings, keeping profitability and cash‑flow concerns front of mind for investors. Recent Earnings Recap

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $86.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.00.

Insider Activity

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Eric Swayze sold 15,642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.76, for a total value of $1,278,889.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 32,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,624,904.80. The trade was a 32.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Allene M. Diaz sold 54,878 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.35, for a total transaction of $4,354,569.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,811 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $302,402.85. This represents a 93.51% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 596,652 shares of company stock valued at $48,059,821. 2.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.