IONS
Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
IONS offers stronger modeled upside, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
NVO
Novo Nordisk A/S
NVO has the edge over IONS overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and lower modeled downside.
IONS Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Under pressure | |
| Weak | |
| Weak | |
| Strong |
IONS's balance sheet is currently strong, but its revenue, profitability and cash flow are under pressure.
NVO Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy |
NVO's revenue, profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its cash flow is stable.
IONS PE Valuation
IONS has no meaningful PE right now: it lost money over the past year.
NVO PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current | 10x | $40.65 | — |
| Cheap | 14x | $53.56 | +32% |
| Fair | 27x | $103 | +154% |
| Expensive | 39x | $152 | +273% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NVO's PE is 10x, but its earnings don't support one, so it isn't a reliable read right now.
IONS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Losses shrinking | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
IONS has the edge over NVO on the outlook, with more favorable earnings and profitability expectations.
NVO Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect NVO's revenue to grow, but its profitability to weaken. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
IONS Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$3.32 | -$1.63 |
| Q2 2026 | -$3.46 | -$1.62 |
| Q1 2026 | -$2.07 | +$0.92 |
| Q4 2025 | -$2.44 | +$0.60 |
| Q3 2025 | -$1.69 | +$0.75 |
| Q2 2025 | -$1.84 | +$0.68 |
| Q1 2025 | -$2.99 | -$0.32 |
| Q4 2024 | -$3.04 | -$0.48 |
IONS is still losing money, but less than at its worst: $3.32 per share over the past year, against $4.23 at its worst in late 2021.
NVO Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $3.89 | +4.9% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.07 | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.42 | +1.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.47 | +10% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.71 | +24% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.49 | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.36 | +21% |
| Q3 2024 | $3.15 | +27% |
NVO has the edge over IONS on earnings quality, reporting a profit while its opponent remains loss making.
IONS Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $242.7M | +55% |
| Q2 2026 | $267.9M | -41% |
| Q1 2026 | $246.1M | +87% |
| Q4 2025 | $203.3M | -10% |
| Q3 2025 | $156.7M | +17% |
| Q2 2025 | $452M | +101% |
| Q1 2025 | $131.6M | +10% |
| Q4 2024 | $226.6M | -30% |
IONS's revenue is recovering but still below its 2019 peak: $243M last quarter, up 55% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -54% | +48 points |
| Q2 2026 | -38% | -69 points |
| Q1 2026 | -48% | +64 points |
| Q4 2025 | -105% | -57 points |
| Q3 2025 | -102% | +8.9 points |
| Q2 2025 | 31% | +60 points |
| Q1 2025 | -112% | +14 points |
| Q4 2024 | -49% | -47 points |
IONS's operating margin was −54% last quarter, up 48 points from the same quarter a year ago.
NVO Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $11.7B | +2.1% |
| Q1 2026 | $14.4B | +24% |
| Q4 2025 | $11.8B | -7.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.1B | +5.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $11.4B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $11.6B | +19% |
| Q4 2024 | $12.7B | +30% |
| Q3 2024 | $10.6B | +21% |
NVO has the edge over IONS on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 34% | -9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 62% | +12 points |
| Q4 2025 | 40% | -2.8 points |
| Q3 2025 | 32% | -16 points |
| Q2 2025 | 44% | +5.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 50% | +1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 43% | +2.2 points |
| Q3 2024 | 47% | +1.6 points |
NVO has the edge over IONS on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
IONS Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$192.1M | -$55.4M |
| Q2 2026 | $549.5M | +295% |
| Q1 2026 | -$814.6M | -$651.2M |
| Q4 2025 | -$159M | -$17.4M |
| Q3 2025 | -$136.7M | -$12.7M |
| Q2 2025 | $139M | +$265.1M |
| Q1 2025 | -$163.4M | -$8.9M |
| Q4 2024 | -$141.6M | -520% |
IONS has burned cash in most quarters: −$616M over the past year, against −$303M the year before.
NVO Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $6.3B | +73% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.8B | +20% |
| Q4 2025 | -$5.4B | -$4.7B |
| Q3 2025 | $4.6B | -2.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.6B | -34% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.5B | +89% |
| Q4 2024 | -$632.6M | +$390.5M |
| Q3 2024 | $4.7B | +3.3% |
NVO has the edge over IONS on cash generation, producing positive trailing cash flow while its opponent burns cash.
IONS Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.5% | +786K shares |
| 1 year | +4% | +6.4M shares |
| 3 years | +16% | +22.9M shares |
| 5 years | +18% | +25.1M shares |
| Available history | +8.4% | +12.9M shares |
IONS has 166M diluted shares, up 4% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2021 | — |
| Q3 2021 | — |
| Q2 2021 | — |
| Q1 2021 | — |
| Q4 2020 | — |
| Q3 2020 | — |
| Q2 2020 | $52,000 |
| Q1 2020 | $90.6M |
NVO Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.3% | -12.9M shares |
| 1 year | -0.2% | -11M shares |
| 3 years | -1.5% | -66.8M shares |
| 5 years | -3.8% | -177M shares |
| Available history | -6.5% | -311M shares |
NVO has the edge over IONS on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $520M |
| Q1 2026 | $356.7M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $206.3M |
| Q4 2024 | $1.1B |
| Q3 2024 | $357.4M |
NVO spent $877M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 48% from the year before.
IONS Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2022 | -8.8x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2022 | -56.9x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2022 | -24.7x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2020 | -5.0x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2020 | -3.2x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2020 | -2.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2019 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
IONS has more cash than debt.
NVO Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2024 | -0.0x | Very low |
NVO's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
IONS Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 21.4 | Oversold |
| Stochastic | 3.6 | Oversold |
IONS's weekly RSI is 21 (oversold) and its Stochastic is 4 (oversold).
NVO Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 27.0 | Neutral |
NVO's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 27 (neutral).
IONS PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | IONS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | N/A | 26x | — |
IONS has no meaningful PE right now: it lost money over the past year.
NVO PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | NVO | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 10x | 26x | 60% below |
| PE % | 6 | 29 | 23 pts below |
NVO is trading at 10x earnings, a 60% discount to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x, though its earnings don't support one.
IONS Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $41.2 | 34% below |
| 20 week MA | $51.2 | 47% below |
| 50 week MA | $66.9 | 59% below |
| 100 week MA | $55.6 | 51% below |
| 200 week MA | $49.0 | 44% below |
IONS is in a downtrend: it's below all five of its weekly moving averages, and 44% below its 200-week average.
NVO Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $39.2 | 3.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $43.9 | 7.4% below |
| 50 week MA | $45.3 | 10% below |
| 100 week MA | $56.3 | 28% below |
| 200 week MA | $80.7 | 50% below |
NVO has the edge over IONS on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
IONS Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $60.8 | $59.7 | -1.8% |
| 2021 | $59.7 | $32.7 | -45% |
| 2022 | $32.7 | $38.2 | +17% |
| 2023 | $38.2 | $50.6 | +33% |
| 2024 | $50.6 | $35.9 | -29% |
| 2025 | $35.9 | $79.9 | +123% |
| 2026 YTD | $79.9 | $27.3 | -66% |
IONS's yearly returns have swung widely, from +123% in 2025 to −45% in 2021. It's down 66% so far in 2026.
NVO Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $29.1 | $34.7 | +19% |
| 2021 | $34.7 | $54.2 | +56% |
| 2022 | $54.2 | $67.0 | +24% |
| 2023 | $67.0 | $103.5 | +54% |
| 2024 | $103.5 | $87.4 | -16% |
| 2025 | $87.4 | $52.4 | -40% |
| 2026 YTD | $52.4 | $40.7 | -22% |
NVO has the edge over IONS on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.