UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Acquires 4,489 Shares of Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd boosted its position in shares of Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 20.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,823 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,489 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd's holdings in Bio-Techne were worth $1,932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Bio-Techne by 46.6% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 16,650 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,215,000 after purchasing an additional 5,295 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Bio-Techne by 58.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 43,298 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,119,000 after buying an additional 16,038 shares in the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new stake in Bio-Techne during the third quarter valued at about $1,188,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bio-Techne in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH lifted its position in shares of Bio-Techne by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 254,034 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $18,298,000 after acquiring an additional 25,650 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity at Bio-Techne

In other news, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.29, for a total value of $1,035,067.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,004 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,014,619.16. This represents a 25.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.96, for a total transaction of $122,685.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,976 shares of the company's stock, valued at $130,336.96. This trade represents 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 insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on TECH shares. Citigroup decreased their target price on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $88.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Bio-Techne in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $81.25.

Bio-Techne Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:TECH traded down $4.27 on Friday, reaching $50.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 489,518 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,121,872. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $71.01. Bio-Techne Co. has a 52-week low of $50.58 and a 52-week high of $85.57. 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 company has a market cap of $8.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.18, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Bio-Techne Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Bio-Techne's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.