Royal Bank of Canada Purchases 85,127 Shares of Biogen Inc. $BIIB

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Biogen Inc. by 34.7%, owning approximately 330,562 shares valued at $45.2 million by the end of the first quarter.
• Biogen reported a quarterly earnings per share of $5.47, exceeding the consensus estimate of $3.93, with revenue of $2.65 billion, also surpassing expectations.
• The average consensus rating for Biogen stock is "Hold" with an average target price of $185.74, following various analysts' revisions of price objectives and ratings.

Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB - Free Report) by 34.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 330,562 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 85,127 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.23% of Biogen worth $45,234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BIIB. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in Biogen by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 6,475 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $990,000 after acquiring an additional 779 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new position in Biogen in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $266,000. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in Biogen by 49.6% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 9,712 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,485,000 after acquiring an additional 3,218 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Biogen by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 13,269 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,029,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in Biogen by 9,300.0% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 188 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. 87.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Biogen Stock Down 1.0%

NASDAQ BIIB traded down $1.47 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $142.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 748,976 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,554,619. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $133.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.69. Biogen Inc. has a twelve month low of $110.04 and a twelve month high of $204.18. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $20.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.59, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.11.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The biotechnology company reported $5.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.93 by $1.54. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. Biogen had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.28 earnings per share. Biogen has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.500-16.000 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Biogen Inc. will post 15.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on BIIB shares. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $121.00 price target on shares of Biogen in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Biogen from $208.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Biogen from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Biogen in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Biogen from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twenty-one have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $181.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction of $69,045.35. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 5,772 shares in the company, valued at $770,850.60. The trade was a 8.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Rachid Izzar sold 2,223 shares of Biogen stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total transaction of $300,105.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 6,330 shares in the company, valued at $854,550. This trade represents a 25.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% 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.