Weitz Investment Management Inc. Grows Position in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH)

Weitz Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 707.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 381,250 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 334,050 shares during the quarter. Bio-Techne accounts for 1.4% of Weitz Investment Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Weitz Investment Management Inc. owned 0.24% of Bio-Techne worth $27,461,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Bio-Techne by 46.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 530 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in Bio-Techne by 60.4% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 672 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Bio-Techne by 35.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 763 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Bio-Techne by 45.3% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,376 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Bio-Techne by 59.4% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,096 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $151,000 after acquiring an additional 781 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 39,004 shares in the company, valued at $3,014,619.16. The trade was a 25.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $130,336.96. This represents a 48.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne Stock Performance

TECH stock traded down $3.52 during trading on Thursday, hitting $54.86. 1,989,323 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,123,996. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 3.94 and a quick ratio of 2.77. The company has a market cap of $8.67 billion, a PE ratio of 55.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.30. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $64.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $71.01. Bio-Techne Co. has a 1 year low of $54.83 and a 1 year high of $85.57.

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

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Bio-Techne's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TECH has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $88.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Baird R W cut shares of Bio-Techne from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bio-Techne presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $81.25.

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.