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

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank increased their price objective 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. Robert W. Baird downgraded Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $88.00 to $68.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective 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. KeyCorp increased their target price on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Baird R W lowered Bio-Techne from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $82.14.

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Bio-Techne Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of TECH stock traded up $1.80 on Monday, reaching $60.27. 3,137,800 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,060,721. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $70.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.52. Bio-Techne has a 52 week low of $56.66 and a 52 week high of $85.57. The company has a current ratio of 3.94, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.53 billion, a PE ratio of 60.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.30.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.03). Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 13.22%. As a group, analysts forecast that Bio-Techne will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bio-Techne

In other Bio-Techne news, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of Bio-Techne stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.29, for a total transaction of $1,035,067.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,004 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,014,619.16. This trade represents a 25.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the firm'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 sale, the director now directly owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $130,336.96. The trade was a 48.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bio-Techne

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of TECH. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Bio-Techne by 46.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 530 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne Company Profile

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.