DAVENPORT & Co LLC Has $17.24 Million Position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $IONS

DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS) by 248.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 217,897 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 155,334 shares during the quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Ionis Pharmaceuticals were worth $17,238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 12,722,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $832,321,000 after acquiring an additional 182,540 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 253.3% in the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,800,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $150,138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,724,400 shares during the last quarter. Tweedy Browne Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Tweedy Browne Co LLC now owns 2,901,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $189,798,000 after purchasing an additional 9,268 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 190.3% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,372,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,771,000 after purchasing an additional 899,476 shares during the period. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment grew its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 8.6% during the second quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 1,160,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,869,000 after purchasing an additional 91,746 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on IONS. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $87.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen cut Ionis Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ionis Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.60.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $72.70 on Thursday. Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.95 and a 12 month high of $86.74. The company has a current ratio of 3.83, a quick ratio of 3.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76. The company has a market capitalization of $12.01 billion, a PE ratio of -29.79 and a beta of 0.31. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.57.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($1.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.23) by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $203.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $156.07 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 68.82% and a negative net margin of 40.36%.The firm’s revenue was down 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.66) earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ionis Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Shannon L. Devers sold 44,199 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 17,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,488,389.52. The trade was a 71.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brett P. Monia sold 126,670 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.20, for a total transaction of $9,525,584.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 242,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,248,182.40. This trade represents a 34.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 1,035,882 shares of company stock worth $80,492,247 in the last three months. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Ionis Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright raised its price target to $120 and maintained a “buy” rating — implying roughly 65% upside from the recent reference price; this is a strong vote of confidence in Ionis’ pipeline and likely helped lift sentiment. HC Wainwright PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Needham & Company increased its price target to $105 and reiterated a “buy” rating — another analyst upgrade that supports higher share-price expectations. Needham PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: The FDA granted priority review to Ionis’ NDA for zilganersen for Alexander disease, setting a Sept. 22, 2026 decision date — a meaningful regulatory catalyst since priority review accelerates the timeline and reflects the agency’s view of potential benefit. FDA Priority Review for Zilganersen
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reports posted this week show zero shares / zero days-to-cover data and flagged increases as NaN — likely a reporting/data anomaly rather than a meaningful change to short positioning. Investors should watch for corrected data if short activity is a concern.
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Eugene Schneider sold 5,812 shares (filed sale, avg price ~$70.97) — insider selling can be perceived negatively, though the executive still holds a large position. The size and timing may temper enthusiasm for some investors. Insider Sale

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.