Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH) Stock Position Lowered by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,501 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 940 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Bio-Techne were worth $828,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Bio-Techne Stock Up 1.0 %

TECH opened at $59.95 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $9.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.30. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $66.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.56. Bio-Techne Co. has a twelve month low of $56.60 and a twelve month high of $85.57.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) last released 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%. Research analysts forecast that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Bio-Techne Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Bio-Techne’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TECH has been the topic of several research reports. Baird R W lowered shares of Bio-Techne from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI initiated 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. StockNews.com cut Bio-Techne from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Bio-Techne from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Five 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 an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.25.

Insider Transactions at Bio-Techne

In other 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 transaction of $1,035,067.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,004 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,014,619.16. The trade was a 25.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 corporate insiders.

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.