ARK Investment Management LLC Sells 461,311 Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS)

ARK Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 19.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,905,056 shares of the company’s stock after selling 461,311 shares during the quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC owned approximately 1.33% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals worth $96,377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of IONS. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 21.1% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,429 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% in the second quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 12,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $514,000 after acquiring an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 62,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,836,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 2.3% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $700,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quilter Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth $360,459,000. Institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Elizabeth L. Hougen sold 2,125 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.54, for a total value of $105,272.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 92,905 shares in the company, valued at $4,602,513.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Elizabeth L. Hougen sold 2,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.54, for a total transaction of $105,272.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 92,905 shares in the company, valued at $4,602,513.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 32,059 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.42, for a total value of $1,616,414.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 154,136 shares in the company, valued at $7,771,537.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 101,734 shares of company stock valued at $5,152,226. 2.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on IONS. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $52.00 to $62.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.67.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.2 %

NASDAQ:IONS opened at $44.66 on Thursday. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $33.32 and a twelve month high of $54.44. The company has a quick ratio of 5.83, a current ratio of 5.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.18. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $46.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $47.46.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.78) by $0.72. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 46.32% and a negative return on equity of 90.29%. The business had revenue of $325.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $176.01 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.37) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 113.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

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.