Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) Reaches New 1-Year Low After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $80.00 to $70.00. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Bio-Techne traded as low as $58.98 and last traded at $60.12, with a volume of 1958641 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $61.19.

Several other analysts have also commented on TECH. StockNews.com raised Bio-Techne from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Baird R W lowered shares of Bio-Techne from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.14.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.96, for a total value of $122,685.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,976 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $130,336.96. The trade was a 48.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,004 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,014,619.16. The trade was a 25.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bio-Techne

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Bio-Techne by 46.4% during the 4th 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 acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.95% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a current ratio of 3.94. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $70.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.67. The company has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.02, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.27.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 13.22% and a return on equity of 12.73%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Bio-Techne Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Bio-Techne's payout ratio is 32.32%.

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.