Biogen Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:BIIB)

Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Investors acquired 32,455 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 737% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,878 put options.

Biogen Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Biogen stock opened at $150.71 on Tuesday. Biogen has a 52-week low of $128.51 and a 52-week high of $238.00. The company has a 50 day moving average of $143.99 and a 200 day moving average of $165.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $22.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.01.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The biotechnology company reported $3.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.43 by $0.01. Biogen had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 14.98%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Biogen will post 15.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Biogen in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Biogen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Biogen from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Biogen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Biogen from $281.00 to $245.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $213.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Stephen A. Sherwin sold 8,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.02, for a total transaction of $1,314,175.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,318 shares in the company, valued at $1,697,926.36. This trade represents a 43.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Biogen

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BIIB. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Biogen by 640.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 163 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Biogen in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its position in shares of Biogen by 9,300.0% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 188 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Biogen during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Biogen in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.93% of the company’s stock.

Biogen Company Profile

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.