Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) Shares Down 4.5% – What’s Next?

Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH) traded down 4.5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $74.45 and last traded at $75.19. 333,414 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 838,261 shares. The stock had previously closed at $78.71.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Bio-Techne from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Bio-Techne from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.00.

Bio-Techne Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a current ratio of 4.56, a quick ratio of 3.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $74.22 and its 200-day moving average is $74.51. The firm has a market cap of $12.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.97, a P/E/G ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 1.27.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.04. Bio-Techne had a net margin of 12.86% and a return on equity of 12.76%. The company had revenue of $289.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $280.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.35 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Bio-Techne’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.04%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bio-Techne

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Bio-Techne in the third quarter worth $39,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Bio-Techne in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in shares of Bio-Techne by 60.4% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 672 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of Bio-Techne by 51.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 612 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. 98.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.