Legal & General Group Plc Trims Stock Holdings in BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. $BMRN

Legal & General Group Plc decreased its stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ:BMRN) by 33.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 603,581 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 306,003 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.31% of BioMarin Pharmaceutical worth $35,871,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in BioMarin Pharmaceutical by 250.8% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 5,455 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $324,000 after buying an additional 3,900 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP increased its position in BioMarin Pharmaceutical by 2,269.8% in the fourth quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 254,400 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $15,119,000 after buying an additional 243,665 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its position in BioMarin Pharmaceutical by 70.6% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 796,737 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $47,350,000 after buying an additional 329,794 shares in the last quarter. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical in the fourth quarter worth about $1,901,000. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in BioMarin Pharmaceutical in the fourth quarter worth about $202,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Charles Greg Guyer sold 16,486 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 79,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,833,958.38. This trade represents a 17.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gregory R. Friberg sold 3,281 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.85, for a total value of $176,681.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 51,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,790,399.30. This represents a 5.95% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on BMRN shares. Citigroup started coverage on BioMarin Pharmaceutical in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on BioMarin Pharmaceutical from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on BioMarin Pharmaceutical from $94.00 to $82.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Barclays increased their target price on BioMarin Pharmaceutical from $80.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on BioMarin Pharmaceutical from $116.00 to $111.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.67.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BMRN opened at $57.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 5.81, a quick ratio of 4.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. has a 12-month low of $49.26 and a 12-month high of $66.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.23.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical 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.