Short Interest in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) Declines By 6.3%

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,870,000 shares, a drop of 6.3% from the September 30th total of 10,530,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,570,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.3 days. Currently, 6.8% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of IONS stock traded down $0.68 during trading on Thursday, reaching $38.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 66,616 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,318,723. The company has a market capitalization of $5.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.70 and a beta of 0.38. Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $35.95 and a 1-year high of $54.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.67, a current ratio of 7.61 and a quick ratio of 7.51. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $42.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.07.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on IONS. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $67.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.28.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Richard S. Geary sold 2,430 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 85,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,104,384. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 2,803 shares of company stock worth $134,402 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.71% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Great Point Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $15,728,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3,287.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 328,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,171,000 after acquiring an additional 319,065 shares during the period. Logos Global Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $14,298,000. Zimmer Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth approximately $11,718,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1,021.5% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 173,199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,255,000 after purchasing an additional 157,756 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

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.