Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Invests $1.35 Million in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 5,234 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,354,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BIIB. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Biogen by 0.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,374,310 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,381,251,000 after purchasing an additional 27,951 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Biogen by 2.8% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,643,035 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $422,276,000 after acquiring an additional 45,437 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Biogen by 4.3% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,493,113 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $383,745,000 after purchasing an additional 61,814 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Biogen by 19.5% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,421,196 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $367,763,000 after acquiring an additional 231,650 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Biogen by 19.1% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,181,374 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $303,625,000 after buying an additional 189,368 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.93% of the company’s stock.

Biogen Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of BIIB traded up $1.01 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $219.93. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 124,708 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,194,942. The firm has a market cap of $32.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of -0.01. Biogen Inc. has a 1-year low of $189.44 and a 1-year high of $319.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a 50 day moving average of $211.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $231.09.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The biotechnology company reported $3.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.45 by $0.22. Biogen had a return on equity of 14.83% and a net margin of 12.07%. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.40 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Biogen Inc. will post 15.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on BIIB shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $364.00 price objective on shares of Biogen in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. HC Wainwright lowered their target price on Biogen from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Biogen from $213.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. HSBC upped their price target on Biogen from $339.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Biogen from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $290.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Biogen

In other Biogen news, Director Eric K. Rowinsky bought 455 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $222.54 per share, for a total transaction of $101,255.70. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 20,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,590,777.66. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Priya Singhal sold 262 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.23, for a total transaction of $57,962.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,080,929.78. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Eric K. Rowinsky bought 455 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $222.54 per share, with a total value of $101,255.70. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 20,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,590,777.66. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 882 shares of company stock valued at $202,030. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.