Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 359,107 Shares of Biogen Inc. $BIIB

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its position in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) by 61.1% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 229,010 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 359,107 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Biogen were worth $28,761,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Biogen by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,446,816 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $181,706,000 after buying an additional 161,789 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management raised its position in shares of Biogen by 33.3% during the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 776 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its stake in shares of Biogen by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 27,427 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,445,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Biogen by 7.8% in the 2nd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 443,100 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $55,649,000 after purchasing an additional 32,100 shares during the period. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Biogen by 21.6% in the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 97,601 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $12,258,000 after purchasing an additional 17,347 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.93% of the company’s stock.

Biogen Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of BIIB stock opened at $181.94 on Thursday. Biogen Inc. has a 52-week low of $110.04 and a 52-week high of $185.17. The stock has a market cap of $26.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.39, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $153.02 and its 200-day moving average is $139.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.50.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $4.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.89 by $0.92. The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for 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%.The business’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.08 earnings per share. Biogen has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.500-15.00 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Biogen Inc. will post 15.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Biogen

In related news, insider Priya Singhal sold 517 shares of the 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 sale, the insider owned 5,772 shares in the company, valued at approximately $770,850.60. This represents a 8.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on BIIB shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on Biogen from $149.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Biogen from $140.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $157.00 price objective (up previously from $118.00) on shares of Biogen in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Wedbush upped their target price on shares of Biogen from $135.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Biogen from $144.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Biogen has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $178.96.

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.