Handelsbanken Fonder AB Trims Position in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lessened its position in shares of Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 57,533 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 18,231 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Biogen were worth $14,888,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Biogen during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Biogen during the third quarter valued at $28,000. KB Financial Partners LLC increased its position in Biogen by 105.1% during the third quarter. KB Financial Partners LLC now owns 121 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Biogen during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its position in Biogen by 215.5% during the third quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 183 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Biogen

In other Biogen news, insider Priya Singhal sold 419 shares of Biogen stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.45, for a total transaction of $100,329.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,081,356.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Biogen news, insider Priya Singhal sold 419 shares of Biogen stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.45, for a total transaction of $100,329.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,081,356.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Eric K. Rowinsky bought 455 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $222.54 per share, with a total value of $101,255.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,629 shares in the company, valued at $4,590,777.66. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 882 shares of company stock valued at $202,030 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on BIIB shares. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Biogen from $333.00 to $316.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Biogen from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Biogen from $350.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Biogen in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on Biogen from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $295.58.

Biogen Price Performance

Shares of BIIB stock opened at $193.18 on Wednesday. Biogen Inc. has a 52-week low of $189.44 and a 52-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. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of -0.02. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $213.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $234.62.

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