Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $275.30.

Several research firms have commented on BIIB. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Biogen from $335.00 to $313.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Biogen from $275.00 to $244.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Biogen from $277.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $292.00 target price on shares of Biogen in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Biogen from $316.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 29th.

Biogen Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BIIB opened at $194.12 on Friday. Biogen has a 52 week low of $189.44 and a 52 week high of $269.43. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $206.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $214.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a market cap of $28.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of -0.06.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The biotechnology company reported $5.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.00 by $1.28. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. Biogen had a return on equity of 15.71% and a net margin of 11.98%. Biogen’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.02 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Biogen will post 16.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Priya Singhal sold 431 shares of Biogen stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.22, for a total value of $88,018.82. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,316 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,085,633.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Biogen

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BIIB. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Biogen by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,407,330 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,728,185,000 after purchasing an additional 2,218,744 shares during the period. FIL Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Biogen by 936.4% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 656,502 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $169,883,000 after acquiring an additional 593,158 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Biogen by 141.0% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 977,308 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $252,898,000 after acquiring an additional 571,795 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Biogen by 22.2% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,737,340 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $374,623,000 after purchasing an additional 316,144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA raised its holdings in Biogen by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 16,264,481 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,208,760,000 after purchasing an additional 251,915 shares during the last quarter. 87.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Biogen

Biogen Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, and delivers therapies for treating neurological and neurodegenerative diseases in the United States, Europe, Germany, Asia, and internationally. The company provides TECFIDERA, VUMERITY, AVONEX, PLEGRIDY, TYSABRI, and FAMPYRA for multiple sclerosis (MS); SPINRAZA for spinal muscular atrophy; ADUHELM to treat Alzheimer's disease; FUMADERM to treat plaque psoriasis; BENEPALI, an etanercept biosimilar referencing ENBREL; IMRALDI, an adalimumab biosimilar referencing HUMIRA; FLIXABI, an infliximab biosimilar referencing REMICADE; and BYOOVIZ, a ranibizumab biosimilar referencing LUCENTIS.