Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) Shares Acquired by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) by 18.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 189,520 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,319 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Biogen were worth $28,981,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BIIB. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Biogen by 13,574.7% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,667,531 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $407,919,000 after buying an additional 2,648,024 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Biogen in the fourth quarter valued at $355,569,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Biogen by 977.9% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,066,460 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $163,083,000 after purchasing an additional 967,523 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Biogen by 30.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,128,807 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $325,537,000 after purchasing an additional 499,074 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Biogen by 982.0% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 539,692 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $81,914,000 after purchasing an additional 489,811 shares during the period. 87.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Biogen

In related news, Director Stephen A. Sherwin sold 8,760 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,697,926.36. This represents a 43.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on BIIB shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Biogen from $217.00 to $205.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Biogen from $265.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Biogen from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Biogen from $219.00 to $197.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Biogen in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Biogen currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $191.30.

Biogen Stock Up 2.8%

BIIB stock opened at $123.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.12. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Biogen Inc. has a 52 week low of $110.04 and a 52 week high of $238.00.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The biotechnology company reported $3.02 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $2.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.25 billion. Biogen had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 16.87%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Biogen Inc. will post 15.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.