BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) Short Interest Up 5.6% in March

BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,200,000 shares, an increase of 5.6% from the March 15th total of 3,030,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 412,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BioLife Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.40.

BioLife Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of BLFS stock opened at $15.14 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $17.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.32. BioLife Solutions has a 52 week low of $8.92 and a 52 week high of $24.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a market cap of $685.84 million, a PE ratio of -9.96 and a beta of 1.67.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The medical equipment provider reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $32.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.70 million. BioLife Solutions had a negative net margin of 46.37% and a negative return on equity of 13.36%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that BioLife Solutions will post -0.6 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Geraint Phillips sold 1,776 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.76, for a total transaction of $29,765.76. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 58,251 shares in the company, valued at $976,286.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Sarah Aebersold sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.65, for a total transaction of $70,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 65,843 shares in the company, valued at $1,162,128.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Geraint Phillips sold 1,776 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.76, for a total transaction of $29,765.76. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 58,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $976,286.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 32,419 shares of company stock worth $550,058. 2.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BioLife Solutions

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in BioLife Solutions during the 1st quarter worth $96,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,571,608 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $41,789,000 after buying an additional 30,763 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 1,038.9% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,401,899 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,031,000 after buying an additional 2,191,002 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,755 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 858 shares during the period. Finally, Meros Investment Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Meros Investment Management LP now owns 392,218 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,374,000 after buying an additional 20,015 shares during the period. 93.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BioLife Solutions Company Profile

BioLife Solutions, Inc develops, manufactures, and markets bioproduction tools and services for the cell and gene therapy (CGT) industry in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. The company's products are used in the basic and applied research, and commercial manufacturing of biologic-based therapies.