Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) Stock Price

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) had its price objective boosted by Barclays from $95.00 to $106.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

IONS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Leerink Partners upped their target price on Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals from $86.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $90.15.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:IONS opened at $74.24 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.56. Ionis Pharmaceuticals 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 2.76, a quick ratio of 3.81 and a current ratio of 3.83. The company has a market cap of $12.26 billion, a PE ratio of -30.43 and a beta of 0.31.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($1.41) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.23) by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $203.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $156.07 million. Ionis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 68.82% and a negative net margin of 40.36%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.66) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Ionis Pharmaceuticals will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Elizabeth L. Hougen sold 10,172 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.21, for a total transaction of $744,692.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 82,660 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,051,538.60. This trade represents a 10.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eugene Schneider sold 5,812 shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.97, for a total value of $412,477.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 63,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,534,273.30. This represents a 8.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,035,882 shares of company stock valued at $80,492,247. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals by 198.4% in 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 last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Ionis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $27,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Ionis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $38,000. 93.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target to $106 and moved to an “overweight” rating, implying roughly ~43% upside from current levels — a clear catalyst for buying interest. Barclays PT raise (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: 247WallSt summarized Barclays’ bullish thesis (calls for a ~45% move to $106), reinforcing the same positive narrative and helping momentum among growth/biotech investors. Why Barclays Thinks Ionis Is Headed for a 45% Surge
• Positive Sentiment: Needham raised its target to $105 and kept a “buy” rating, adding to the cluster of upward revisions that make the stock appealing to traders chasing analyst-led breakouts. Needham PT raise (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright boosted its target to $120 and reiterated a Buy, and its analyst also modeled a much improved FY‑2027 EPS (-$0.35 vs. much deeper consensus losses), signaling expectations for near‑term improvement in profitability assumptions. HC Wainwright research note (MarketBeat)
• Positive Sentiment: MSN reports Ionis repriced a drug ahead of a key FDA decision, which the company frames as positioning the therapy for a larger commercial market — a strategic move that could lift revenue assumptions if the FDA outcome is favorable. Ionis repriced drug ahead of FDA decision (MSN)
• Neutral Sentiment: A comparative head‑to‑head writeup vs. Innate Pharma provides market context but doesn’t add a direct catalyst; useful for longer‑term investors researching relative positioning. Head to Head Analysis (AmericanBankingNews)
• Negative Sentiment: Company insider Eugene Schneider sold 5,812 shares — a modest-sized sale that investors may watch for pattern changes but likely not material on its own. Insider sale report (AmericanBankingNews)

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Company 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.