Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $355.85 and last traded at $353.82, with a volume of 221106 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $352.47.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on BIO shares. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories from $320.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $343.33.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $9.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.83 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $306.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $289.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 3.14 and a quick ratio of 2.33.

Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical research company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.87. The business had revenue of $651.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $623.99 million. Bio-Rad Laboratories had a return on equity of 3.54% and a net margin of 8.59%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.61 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bio-Rad Laboratories

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Westport Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the second quarter valued at $881,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 57.8% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 233,227 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $68,478,000 after acquiring an additional 85,393 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 38.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,168 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $604,000 after acquiring an additional 597 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in Bio-Rad Laboratories by 1,763.4% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 38,778 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $10,809,000 after purchasing an additional 36,697 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Bio-Rad Laboratories by 22.9% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 21,932 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,114,000 after purchasing an additional 4,082 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.24% of the company’s stock.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Company Profile

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc is a global provider of life science research and clinical diagnostic products. The company operates through two primary business segments: Life Science and Clinical Diagnostics. Within the Life Science segment, Bio-Rad offers instruments, reagents and consumables for protein analysis, cell biology, gene expression and other molecular biology applications. The Clinical Diagnostics segment supplies quality control products, blood-typing reagents and instruments, and molecular diagnostic assays used in blood screening, infectious disease testing and routine clinical laboratories.

Founded in 1952 by David and Alice Schwartz and headquartered in Hercules, California, Bio-Rad has grown its footprint across the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific and other regions.