International Assets Investment Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS)

International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 3,287.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 328,772 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 319,065 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC owned 0.23% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals worth $13,171,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. TD Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 6.1% in the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 952,762 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,409,000 after buying an additional 54,400 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% in the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 948,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,192,000 after buying an additional 36,369 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 12.2% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 571,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,786,000 after buying an additional 62,230 shares during the period. Great Point Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $15,728,000. Finally, Logos Global Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $14,298,000. 93.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Richard S. Geary sold 2,430 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total value of $116,640.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,508 shares in the company, valued at $4,104,384. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 2,803 shares of company stock worth $134,402 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 2.71% of the company’s stock.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of IONS stock opened at $39.26 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of -14.70 and a beta of 0.38. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $42.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.07. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $35.95 and a 12 month high of $54.44. The company has a current ratio of 7.61, a quick ratio of 7.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.67.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.45) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.92) by $0.47. The company had revenue of $225.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $152.35 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 44.90% and a negative return on equity of 115.66%. Ionis Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on IONS. Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $53.00 to $62.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.28.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.