TLDR
- Truist Securities upgrades Biogen to Buy from Hold, raising price target to $235 from $190
- Upgrade comes ahead of Phase 2 data presentation for Alzheimer’s drug diranersen on July 14
- Biogen stock rose 1.3% to $201.63 in premarket trading Monday
- Truist added risk-adjusted revenue forecasts for lupus drug litifilimab and felzartamab to its model
- Q2 earnings, due July 29, are not seen as a major catalyst by Truist
Truist Securities upgraded Biogen (BIIB) to Buy from Hold on Monday, raising its price target to $235 from $190. That implies roughly 18% upside from Friday’s closing price of $199.15.
Biogen stock climbed 1.3% to $201.63 in premarket trading. The stock has dropped 7.8% this month but is still up 13% year-to-date, ahead of the S&P 500’s 11% gain.
The upgrade is timed around Biogen’s presentation Tuesday at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in London, where the company will share detailed Phase 2 data for its experimental drug, diranersen.
In May, Biogen announced diranersen missed the primary endpoint of its Phase 2 study. But the company says it still plans to move forward with a Phase 3 trial, and Tuesday’s presentation is expected to lay out the reasoning behind that call.
Truist said it has an “increasingly constructive” view on the stock, driven by expectations the diranersen data could serve as a meaningful positive catalyst. The firm sees “attractive risk/reward” heading into what it calls “de-risking pivotal data readouts.”
Pipeline Beyond Alzheimer’s
Truist’s optimism doesn’t stop at diranersen. The firm also pointed to a set of late-stage pipeline readouts expected over the next two years as key drivers of long-term value.
That includes a Phase 3 readout for lupus drug litifilimab in Q4 2026 and felzartamab in antibody-mediated rejection around mid-2027.
Truist assigned 50% probability-adjusted peak sales of around $750 million to litifilimab and 65% probability-adjusted sales of roughly $500 million to felzartamab in antibody-mediated rejection, plus $260 million for primary membranous nephropathy.
Those additions lifted Truist’s estimated 2035 revenue forecast by approximately $1.5 billion, which underpins the raised price target.
The firm argues the market is not fully pricing in the commercial potential of Biogen’s Alzheimer’s and immunology pipeline.
Watch the Partner Too
Investors tracking Biogen should also keep an eye on Ionis Pharmaceuticals, a development partner. Ionis stock fell sharply last week after a heart drug it developed with AstraZeneca failed in a surprise study setback.
Truist said it does not view Biogen’s Q2 earnings, due July 29, as a major catalyst.
Instead, the firm expects pipeline milestones — starting with Tuesday’s diranersen data — to drive investor sentiment in the quarters ahead.
Biogen stock is up 13% so far in 2026.
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