Marshall Wace LLP Buys 13,652 Shares of Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB)

Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) by 20.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 79,952 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,652 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned about 0.05% of Biogen worth $12,226,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Biogen during the third quarter valued at about $4,111,000. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Biogen in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,118,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Biogen during the third quarter valued at approximately $150,000. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Biogen by 13.6% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 9,012 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,747,000 after acquiring an additional 1,082 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Biogen by 6.0% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,462 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,803,000 after acquiring an additional 821 shares in the last quarter. 87.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Biogen Stock Performance

BIIB stock opened at $116.49 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.90. Biogen Inc. has a 1 year low of $110.04 and a 1 year high of $238.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $133.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $150.71.

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The biotechnology company reported $3.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.43 by $0.01. Biogen had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 16.87%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Biogen Inc. will post 15.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Stephen A. Sherwin sold 8,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.02, for a total value of $1,314,175.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,697,926.36. This trade represents a 43.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Biogen from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Biogen from $231.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Biogen in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Biogen from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, HC Wainwright decreased their price target on shares of Biogen from $300.00 to $241.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Biogen currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $213.15.

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.