BioMarin Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:BMRN) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on BioMarin with an "overweight" rating and a $120 price target, implying roughly a 121% upside from the stock's previous close.
• BioMarin shares traded around $54.31, while the MarketBeat consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with a $90.92 average price target and a 52‑week range of $50.76–$66.28 (market cap ~$10.5B).
• Two executive VPs recently sold stock (combined ~22,812 shares), reducing their holdings; insiders now own 0.85% of the company while institutional investors hold about 98.71%.

Research analysts at Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of BioMarin Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:BMRN - Get Free Report) in a report released on Monday. The firm set an "overweight" rating and a $120.00 price target on the biotechnology company's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price would indicate a potential upside of 120.94% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on BMRN. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of BioMarin Pharmaceutical from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of BioMarin Pharmaceutical from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Loop Capital set a $105.00 price objective on shares of BioMarin Pharmaceutical in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. HC Wainwright cut their price objective on shares of BioMarin Pharmaceutical from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of BioMarin Pharmaceutical from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $90.92.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BMRN traded up $1.13 on Monday, reaching $54.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 68,163 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,014,014. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 3.50 and a current ratio of 5.21. BioMarin Pharmaceutical has a 52-week low of $50.76 and a 52-week high of $66.28. The company has a market cap of $10.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.52, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.29.

Insider Transactions at BioMarin Pharmaceutical

In other news, EVP Gregory R. Friberg sold 6,326 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.38, for a total value of $381,963.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 37,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,268,959.64. This represents a 14.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles Greg Guyer sold 16,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.46, for a total transaction of $996,743.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 79,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,833,958.38. The trade was a 17.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BMRN. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical by 442.6% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 1,726 shares during the period. Peregrine Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical in the first quarter worth about $8,300,000. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical by 3.1% in the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 104,536 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $5,905,000 after acquiring an additional 3,116 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical by 21.8% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 27,427 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,549,000 after acquiring an additional 4,913 shares during the period. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical in the first quarter worth about $3,146,000. 98.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Company Profile

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development and commercialization of therapies for rare genetic and metabolic diseases. The company focuses on addressing unmet medical needs by leveraging enzyme replacement therapy, small molecule pharmacological chaperones and gene therapy technologies. Headquartered in Novato, California, BioMarin operates research and development facilities in the United States and Europe.

The company's commercial portfolio includes several approved therapies targeting inherited disorders.

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