Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Stephens

Stephens lowered shares of Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $76.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Leerink Partners set a $73.00 price target on Bio-Techne in a research note on Thursday. William Blair lowered Bio-Techne from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Bio-Techne in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Bio-Techne from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $68.07.

Bio-Techne Price Performance

Shares of TECH opened at $71.00 on Friday. Bio-Techne has a 1-year low of $43.19 and a 1-year high of $72.16. The stock has a market cap of $11.12 billion, a PE ratio of 102.90, a P/E/G ratio of 6.85 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 4.49 and a quick ratio of 3.18.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). Bio-Techne had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The company had revenue of $311.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $316.11 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. Bio-Techne’s revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Bio-Techne will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. Bio-Techne’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.38%.

Institutional Trading of Bio-Techne

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of TECH. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. eCIO Inc. acquired a new position in Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in Bio-Techne during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Bio-Techne by 506.3% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 673 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.95% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Bio-Techne

Here are the key news stories impacting Bio-Techne this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Merck KGaA’s all-cash buyout offer gives Bio-Techne shareholders a clear takeover price and a premium valuation anchor. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, Agrees to Acquire Bio-Techne, Strengthening Leadership Position in Fast-Growing Life Sciences Markets
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst actions were mixed but included an upgrade from Evercore to strong-buy and a price-target increase from Baird to $73, reinforcing the view that the shares were moving toward deal value.
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual call-option activity suggests traders are positioning for further merger-related volatility, but that activity does not change the takeover terms.
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder-law-firm investigations have begun over whether the Merck deal provides a fair price, which could add some headline risk and scrutiny around the transaction. SHAREHOLDER ALERT: The M&A Class Action Firm Announces An Investigation of Bio-Techne Corporation (NASDAQ: TECH)

About Bio-Techne

Bio-Techne Corporation (NASDAQ:TECH) is a global life sciences company that develops, manufactures and sells high-quality reagents, instruments and services for the research, diagnostic and bioprocessing markets. Its core product offerings include recombinant proteins, antibodies, immunoassays, nucleic acid probes and kits, single-cell analysis solutions and automated protein analysis systems. Flagship brands such as R&D Systems, Novus Biologicals, ProteinSimple and Advanced Cell Diagnostics provide researchers and clinicians with reliable tools for cell biology, immunology, proteomics and genomics applications.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bio-Techne serves customers across North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region through a combination of direct sales, distributors and strategic partnerships.