Stifel Nicolaus Upgrades Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) to “Buy”

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) was upgraded by stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a $202.00 price objective on the biotechnology company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $144.00. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target indicates a potential upside of 31.66% from the stock’s previous close.

BIIB has been the subject of a number of other reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Biogen from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Friday, October 31st. HC Wainwright raised their target price on Biogen from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Biogen from $217.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Mizuho raised their target price on Biogen from $169.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Biogen from $128.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eighteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $177.46.

Biogen Stock Performance

Shares of BIIB opened at $153.43 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $22.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.67, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $145.11 and a 200 day moving average of $134.36. Biogen has a 12 month low of $110.04 and a 12 month high of $179.20.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $4.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.89 by $0.92. The company had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. Biogen had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 15.31%.Biogen’s revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.08 earnings per share. Biogen has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.500-15.00 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Biogen will post 15.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Biogen

In other news, insider Priya Singhal sold 517 shares of Biogen stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.55, for a total value of $69,045.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,772 shares in the company, valued at approximately $770,850.60. The trade was a 8.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Biogen

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BIIB. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Biogen during the second quarter valued at $284,358,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Biogen by 153.6% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,368,842 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $187,258,000 after buying an additional 829,150 shares during the period. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd boosted its stake in Biogen by 1,663.4% during the first quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 780,567 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $106,813,000 after buying an additional 736,301 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Biogen by 6,828.4% during the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 517,275 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $64,965,000 after buying an additional 509,809 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in Biogen by 190.7% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 624,371 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $78,415,000 after buying an additional 409,591 shares during the period. 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.