Flputnam Investment Management Co. Cuts Stock Holdings in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. decreased its stake in shares of Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,931 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 185 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Biogen were worth $500,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Biogen by 2.5% during the second quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,591 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. First Manhattan Co. lifted its position in Biogen by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 160 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its position in Biogen by 2.5% during the first quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,640 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $456,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its position in Biogen by 1.1% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 4,032 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,036,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Biogen by 2.3% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,043 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $525,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Biogen from $280.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Biogen from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $311.00 price target on shares of Biogen in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Biogen from $276.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Biogen from $305.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.73.

Biogen Stock Performance

BIIB opened at $192.16 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.08, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of -0.02. The company has a fifty day moving average of $217.16 and a 200 day moving average of $236.56. Biogen Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $192.01 and a fifty-two week high of $319.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 2.00.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The biotechnology company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by ($0.23). Biogen had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 11.81%. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.05 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Biogen Inc. will post 15.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Biogen 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.