Royal Bank of Canada Reiterates Outperform Rating for Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB)

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by investment analysts at Royal Bank of Canada in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $292.00 price objective on the biotechnology company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 47.78% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on BIIB. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Biogen from $240.00 to $225.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Wedbush decreased their price target on shares of Biogen from $215.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Biogen from $277.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Biogen in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Biogen in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.52.

Biogen Stock Performance

Biogen stock opened at $197.59 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $28.77 billion, a PE ratio of 24.67, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of -0.06. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company’s 50-day moving average is $208.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $215.26. Biogen has a 1 year low of $189.44 and a 1 year high of $269.43.

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

Insider Activity at Biogen

In other news, insider Priya Singhal sold 431 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.22, for a total transaction of $88,018.82. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,316 shares in the company, valued at $1,085,633.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Biogen

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Leo Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Biogen during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,265,000. Duality Advisers LP bought a new stake in Biogen during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,290,000. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Biogen by 924.4% in the first quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. now owns 46,200 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $9,962,000 after purchasing an additional 41,690 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Biogen by 0.9% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 386,482 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $83,337,000 after purchasing an additional 3,380 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Biogen by 235.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,860 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,204,000 after buying an additional 10,425 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.93% of the company’s stock.

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.