BioLife Solutions, Inc. $BLFS Shares Sold by Royce & Associates LP

Royce & Associates LP lessened its stake in BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) by 11.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 417,090 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 54,839 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 0.87% of BioLife Solutions worth $10,085,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BioLife Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of BioLife Solutions by 54.1% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,877 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 659 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of BioLife Solutions by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,113 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of BioLife Solutions by 82.0% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,994 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in BioLife Solutions during the first quarter worth about $153,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other BioLife Solutions news, insider Karen A. Foster sold 96,923 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.15, for a total value of $1,952,998.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 113,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,291,901.30. This represents a 46.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Casdin Partners Master Fund, L sold 650,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.70, for a total transaction of $15,405,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 4,757,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,744,810.50. This trade represents a 12.02% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,299,641 shares of company stock valued at $30,134,000. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

BioLife Solutions Stock Up 2.0%

BLFS opened at $24.50 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -306.21 and a beta of 1.97. BioLife Solutions, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.86 and a fifty-two week high of $29.62. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $21.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.85.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.03. BioLife Solutions had a negative net margin of 2.80% and a positive return on equity of 1.81%. The firm had revenue of $27.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.66 million. Research analysts anticipate that BioLife Solutions, Inc. will post 0.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BLFS has been the topic of several research reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of BioLife Solutions from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of BioLife Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, BioLife Solutions presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.00.

BioLife Solutions Profile

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) specializes in biopreservation and cold chain workflow solutions for cell and gene therapies, regenerative medicine and other advanced biologics. The company develops and markets proprietary cryopreservation media and technology platforms designed to maintain cell viability and functionality during processing, storage and transport. BioLife’s product portfolio addresses critical steps in the manufacturing and distribution of cell-based products, helping life science researchers and biopharmaceutical manufacturers protect and preserve living cells.

The company’s flagship offerings include CryoStor, a family of serum-free cryopreservation media; HypoThermosol, a hypothermic storage solution for short-term cell and tissue preservation; and the ThawSTAR system, an automated cell thawing instrument that delivers controlled and reproducible warming of frozen cell therapies.