Biogen price target raised 20% to $420 at Instinet, citing 'meaningful 2018 for the company'

Biogen Inc.'s price target was raised 18% to $420 by Instinet on Thursday, citing its expectation of "a meaningful 2018 for the company." The price target increase comes as Biogen shares have slid 3% after a negative analysis was released for one of its Alzheimer's disease drug trials. Instinet analyst Christopher Marai, however, noted high hopes for the company's spinal muscular atrophy therapy Spinraza, agreements Biogen has with companies like Alkermes and Eisai and the company's much-anticipated other Alzheimer's disease drug, aducanumab. "In our view, potentially positive catalysts from BIIB's both widely covered and underappreciated mid- to late-stage pipeline assets (which we do not yet include in our own estimates) will not only be stock-moving but also index-moving, making BIIB 'a must own name.'" Biogen shares have risen 2.6% over the last three months to $323.23, compared with a 7.5% rise in the S&P 500 and a 10.6% rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.