Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS Stock Position Boosted by Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 161.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 155,790 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 96,164 shares during the quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $10,192,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 198.4% during 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 period. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 231.8% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 517 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 620.2% in the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 713 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the period. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:IONS opened at $82.22 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $80.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.11. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $23.95 and a 52 week high of $86.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a current ratio of 2.79. The company has a market cap of $13.32 billion, a PE ratio of -48.65 and a beta of 0.29.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IONS has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.95.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 29,430 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.79, for a total value of $2,524,799.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 254,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,833,297.63. This represents a 10.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP C Frank Bennett sold 85,089 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.93, for a total value of $7,056,430.77. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 80,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,658,698.49. The trade was a 51.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 481,356 shares of company stock valued at $38,987,621. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

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.