Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $85.45, but opened at $81.75. Ionis Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $82.6850, with a volume of 514,674 shares trading hands.

The company reported ($1.41) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.23) by ($0.18). Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 40.36% and a negative return on equity of 66.25%. The business had revenue of $203.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $156.07 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.66) EPS. The business’s revenue was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Key Ionis Pharmaceuticals News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ionis Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue beat estimates — quarterly revenue came in around $203M, helped by strong Tryngolza sales, showing commercial traction for the lead product. Ionis Q4 Earnings & Sales Beat
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst note: Stifel nudged its price target higher to $77 and maintained a Hold — a modest vote of confidence but the target still sits below the stock’s recent trade, so it’s not a bullish catalyst. Benzinga: Stifel Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Management outreach — Ionis presented at the Oppenheimer Healthcare Life Sciences conference and posted its Q4 earnings call transcript and slide deck, giving investors more detail on commercialization plans and pipeline milestones. Useful for diligence but not immediately market‑moving. Oppenheimer Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Soft FY‑2026 revenue guidance — Ionis guided revenue of $800–$825M, well below the street (~$895.6M). Management flagged slower uptake for some newer drugs, which put pressure on the stock despite the quarter’s revenue beat. Ionis Guides Below 2026 Sales Views
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability/EPS confusion and misses — headlines show mixed EPS outcomes (company reported an adjusted loss in the quarter with some outlets noting an EPS miss vs. consensus), which combined with the weak guide increased uncertainty on near‑term earnings power. Press Release / Slide Deck

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on IONS. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. 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 research report on Monday, January 5th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.15.

Insider Activity at Ionis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Shannon L. Devers sold 44,199 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.08, for a total value of $3,760,450.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,488,389.52. This trade represents a 71.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 62,970 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.72, for a total transaction of $5,208,878.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 283,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,486,441.44. This trade represents a 18.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 464,579 shares of company stock worth $37,630,193 over the last quarter. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Grandfield & Dodd LLC raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 37,821 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,992,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital increased its position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 5,536 shares of the company’s stock worth $460,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 4,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $376,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 9,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $765,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the period. 93.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.4%

The company has a quick ratio of 2.78, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $81.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.63. The firm has a market cap of $13.05 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.03 and a beta of 0.29.

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.