Investing.com — Stifel downgraded shares of Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:) from “Buy” to “Hold”, noting that the company had a rough year due to the slow rollout of its Alzheimer’s drug, lecanemab.
Despite initial expectations of a gradual launch to address infrastructure challenges, progress remains further behind than expected.
“We are downgrading BIIB even after the stock’s poor performance in 2024,” analyst said.
“We see the shares staying in a range until something else changes the story, and it is less clear what this will be in 2025”
Regulatory delays are also weighing on Biogen, with approvals for subcutaneous (SQ) formulations of lecanemab now pushed back to 2025 for maintenance and 2026 for introduction. This contributes to broader challenges, including declining base activity, a softer-than-expected Skyclarys launch and limited clinical catalysts in 2025.
Skyclarys, seen as a crucial growth driver, will be closely watched in 2025 as Biogen looks to demonstrate its potential to generate more than $1 billion in revenue. Meanwhile, there is a lack of major clinical milestones, apart from possible developments for Litifilimab in systemic lupus erythematosus.
Investor attention is now firmly focused on the execution of the drug launch and the possibility of significant business development deals being struck to revive the pipeline.