Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Decreases Position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 20.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 156,657 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,457 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $5,477,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. now owns 20,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $817,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank lifted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 9,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 83.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 664 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. lifted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 40.9% during the 3rd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 16,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $668,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Michael R. Hayden purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $36.22 per share, for a total transaction of $181,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 35,219 shares in the company, valued at $1,275,632.18. The trade was a 16.55 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eric Swayze sold 7,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.84, for a total transaction of $234,937.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 45,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,499,802.80. This trade represents a 13.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 110,609 shares of company stock worth $3,564,867. 2.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.6 %

NASDAQ IONS opened at $30.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 8.82 and a current ratio of 8.91. The firm has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a PE ratio of -12.44 and a beta of 0.34. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a one year low of $30.23 and a one year high of $52.34. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $34.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.10.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.65.

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.