Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) Short Interest Up 41.4% in February

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 862,700 shares, a growth of 41.4% from the February 13th total of 610,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 230,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days. Approximately 4.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories stock traded up $0.56 on Thursday, reaching $254.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 280,625 shares, compared to its average volume of 268,276. The company has a market capitalization of $7.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.92 and a beta of 0.98. Bio-Rad Laboratories has a 52-week low of $244.00 and a 52-week high of $387.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $306.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $326.40. The company has a quick ratio of 4.85, a current ratio of 6.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.04. Bio-Rad Laboratories had a positive return on equity of 3.90% and a negative net margin of 71.86%. Analysts expect that Bio-Rad Laboratories will post 10.81 EPS for the current year.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

BIO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $481.00 price target on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Bio-Rad Laboratories from $360.00 to $345.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Bio-Rad Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $395.20.

Institutional Trading of Bio-Rad Laboratories

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 2,175.0% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 91 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 342.9% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 55.6% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 98 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. 65.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Company Profile

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc manufactures and distributes life science research and clinical diagnostic products in the United States, Europe, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through two segments, Life Science and Clinical Diagnostics. The company develops, manufactures, and markets instruments, systems, reagents, and consumables to separate, purify, characterize, and quantitate biological materials such as cells, proteins, and nucleic acids for proteomics, genomics, biopharmaceutical production, cellular biology, and food safety markets.