Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Baird R W lowered shares of Bio-Techne from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $82.14.

Bio-Techne Trading Down 2.3 %

Bio-Techne stock traded down $1.47 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $62.90. The stock had a trading volume of 2,469,305 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,043,721. The company has a quick ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 3.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Bio-Techne has a 52-week low of $58.88 and a 52-week high of $85.57. The firm has a market cap of $9.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $70.61 and a 200 day moving average of $72.68.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.03). Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 13.22%. On average, analysts anticipate that Bio-Techne will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.29, for a total transaction of $1,035,067.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,014,619.16. This represents a 25.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.96, for a total transaction of $122,685.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $130,336.96. This trade represents a 48.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bio-Techne

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Bio-Techne by 46.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 530 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.95% of the company’s stock.

About Bio-Techne

Bio-Techne Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells life science reagents, instruments, and services for the research and clinical diagnostic markets in the United States, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, Middle East, and Africa, Greater China, rest of Asia-Pacific, and internationally.