Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 235 Shares of Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. cut its stake in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) by 10.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,930 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 235 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Biogen were worth $550,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BIIB. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Biogen by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,720,584 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,468,356,000 after buying an additional 183,285 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Biogen by 2.8% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,208,906 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,518,196,000 after acquiring an additional 197,400 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Biogen by 0.8% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,452,888 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,516,066,000 after purchasing an additional 41,675 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Biogen by 771.2% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,556,583 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $90,400,000 after purchasing an additional 2,263,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Biogen by 49.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,088,356 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $580,627,000 after purchasing an additional 691,843 shares during the period. 85.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BIIB. HSBC began coverage on shares of Biogen in a report on Wednesday, September 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $360.00 price objective on the stock. Atlantic Securities dropped their price objective on Biogen from $282.00 to $275.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 8th. StockNews.com cut Biogen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 10th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Biogen from $327.00 to $312.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Biogen from $361.00 to $373.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $326.08.

Insider Activity at Biogen

In other Biogen news, insider Priya Singhal sold 431 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.43, for a total transaction of $116,124.33. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $903,668.22. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Biogen Stock Performance

Shares of BIIB stock opened at $230.11 on Tuesday. Biogen Inc. has a 12 month low of $220.86 and a 12 month high of $319.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $249.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $272.07. The firm has a market cap of $33.34 billion, a PE ratio of 22.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 8th. The biotechnology company reported $4.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.99 by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.40 billion. Biogen had a net margin of 14.63% and a return on equity of 16.40%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.77 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Biogen Inc. will post 14.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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 offers 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.