Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at StockNews.com

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

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Bio-Techne in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Bio-Techne from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Bio-Techne from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bio-Techne has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.25.

Bio-Techne Price Performance

Shares of TECH stock opened at $59.95 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $66.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.56. Bio-Techne has a 12 month low of $56.60 and a 12 month high of $85.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 3.94 and a quick ratio of 2.77. The company has a market capitalization of $9.48 billion, a PE ratio of 60.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bio-Techne

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Bio-Techne by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 530 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Bio-Techne in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Bio-Techne in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Bio-Techne in the third quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.