Virtu Financial LLC Makes New $1.59 Million Investment in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 22,210 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,591,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Bio-Techne by 922.5% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 409 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bio-Techne in the second quarter worth about $31,000. DT Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Bio-Techne by 1,427.8% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 550 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. 98.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bio-Techne Stock Up 1.6 %

Bio-Techne stock traded up $1.23 on Wednesday, hitting $76.51. 834,047 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,039,250. Bio-Techne Co. has a 1 year low of $51.79 and a 1 year high of $85.57. The firm has a market cap of $12.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 3.87, a quick ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $75.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.90.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49. The business had revenue of $306.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.49 million. Bio-Techne had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.56 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Bio-Techne Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. Bio-Techne's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.40%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TECH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lowered Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Bio-Techne in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Bio-Techne from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.60.

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.